Barbara Keating’s Resting Place Established 25 Years After 9/11

Barbara Keating, who tragically passed away as a passenger on American Airlines Flight 11, will be laid to rest this Friday. Flight 11 was the aircraft that terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center, impacting the north tower on September 11, 2001. Keating’s remains were identified last year, bringing some closure to her family.

As the United States marks the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Keating’s family will convene in Framingham, Massachusetts for a private ceremony. She was flying back to California after a family visit when the terrorists struck. A diligent team of forensic researchers worked for years to confirm her identity.

We carved the headstone 25 years ago, but she wasn’t there, and now she will be. This feels like, at least to some degree, some closure, Paul Keating, her son, shared with NPR.

On that fateful day, Paul Keating was in New Jersey on business. He vividly recalls witnessing the twin towers engulfed in flames and succumbing to the tragedy. Realizing his mother’s plight added personal anguish to the national despair.

Barbara Keating was 72, a mother of five, a grandmother to 12, and had retired from her role leading a chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters near Boston. Her remains will be laid beside her husband.

She was tough, funny, very smart, she was fabulous, Paul Keating fondly reminisced.

Of the 2,753 victims in New York City on 9/11, 40% remain unaccounted for. Despite this, teams are meticulously working through remnants of the World Trade Center’s devastation, striving to identify the still missing.

Paul Keating expressed his admiration for these ongoing efforts. He acknowledged their importance in providing solace through the recovery of loved ones’ remains:

It just means a lot to comb over miles and miles of city blocks of debris for every day, 60 hours a week for 24 years, he noted.

The task of identifying approximately 1,100 still-missing victims continues. New York’s chief medical examiner, Dr. Jason Graham, reiterated this mission as a sacred commitment. He emphasized their vow to match remains to families despite the years that have passed since the event.

In recent developments, researchers have used advanced forensic DNA technologies to identify another previously unnamed woman. Her identity remains confidential at her family’s request.