Remembering the Six People Killed in the First World Trade Center Attack

As we prepare to mark the 28th anniversary of the first attack on the World Trade Center that took place on February 26, 1993, with a commemorative ceremony and a virtual tour, we take a moment to remember the six people killed in the first terror attack on the Twin Towers. Learn more about the 1993 bombing at the World Trade Center on our 1993 Commemoration page and timeline of the attack. 

We also invite you to join us at 2 p.m. for a free Zoom tour through the Museum’s key spaces This 60-minute program provides a deeper understanding of 9/11 and the 1993 bombing, the lead-up to the attacks, and their continuing global significance. Please RSVP to reserve your spot on the virtual tour. Space is limited and reservations are required. 

Monica Rodriquez Smith

Born in Manta, Ecuador, Monica Rodriquez Smith lived in Seaford, Long Island, with her husband, Edward. She was pregnant with their first child and had recently renovated their home and set up the baby’s room. Monica worked at the World Trade Center as a mechanical unit secretary for the Port Authority. She loved her job and even met her husband there when he made a sales call to her office. Edward pursued her for two years before she agreed to a date.

Monica had immigrated to the United States with her parents and four brothers. “My wife was the embodiment of the American Dream,” said Smith in a tribute to his wife. He remembers her as “a vivacious, outgoing person who was full of energy. She was the life of the party. At the same time, she was a natural mom to the people around her.”

On February 26, 1993, her last day of work before maternity leave, she was having lunch in the complex’s basement when a bomb exploded in the nearby parking garage. She was 35 years old.

Robert Kirkpatrick

Skilled in carpentry, plumbing, and locksmithing, Robert Kirkpatrick worked for the Port Authority as a senior structural maintenance supervisor. Robert lived in Suffern, New York, with his wife, Evelyn. He spoke of retiring in November 1993. On February 26 of that year, Robert was in the World Trade Center basement on his lunch break when a bomb exploded in the nearby parking garage. He was 61 years old.

John DiGiovanni

Born in Brooklyn, John DiGiovanni lived in Valley Stream, Long Island, with his mother. Known for his meticulousness, John detailed his car with a toothbrush. He worked as an East Coast sales manager for Kerr Chemicals.

Heading to a sales call on February 26, 1993, John pulled his car into the World Trade Center’s underground parking garage just before a bomb was detonated there. He was 45 years old.

A memorial fountain was built directly above the blast site on the World Trade Center’s Austin J. Tobin Plaza, which opened to the public two years after the attack on February 23. Inscribed on the 30-foot granite memorial were the names of the six victims. The fountain was destroyed on September 11, 2001, and only a single fragment of the 1993 memorial was recovered from the rubble. It bears part of John’s name.

William Mercado

Born in Lima, Peru, Wilfredo Mercado lived in East New York, Brooklyn, with his wife, Olga, and their two daughters. Wilfredo worked two jobs at the World Trade Center: weekdays as Windows on the World’s purchasing agent and weekends as a security guard. On February 26, 1993, he was receiving food deliveries in the complex’s basement when a bomb exploded in the nearby parking garage. Wilfredo was 37 years old.

Stephen Knapp

Stephen Knapp lived with his wife, Louise, and their two children on Staten Island, where he was born. Stephen worked at the World Trade Center since its opening and was the Port Authority’s chief maintenance supervisor.

A man who didn't need a lot to make him happy, Stephen enjoyed spending time with family and friends, fishing on his boat, and going to the racetrack or a ballgame. He enjoyed playing with his kids and their friends, and he would often be having just as good a time as the young ones.

On February 26, 1993, Stephen was on his lunch break in the World Trade Center basement when a bomb exploded in the nearby parking garage. He was 47 years old.

William Macko

William Macko lived in Bayonne, New Jersey. He and his wife, Carol, had four children. William was a former U.S. Marine and enjoyed fishing and cooking. He worked for the Port Authority as an assistant chief mechanical supervisor for the World Trade Center. On February 26, 1993, William was on his lunch break in the complex’s basement when a bomb exploded in the nearby parking garage. He was 57 years old.

Currently on view in the 9/11 Memorial Museum is a cross carved from the same granite used for the 1993 memorial that stood on the World Trade Center Plaza until it was destroyed in the 9/11 attacks. William’s wife received the cross and kept it alongside their wedding photo and the American flag that draped William’s coffin at his funeral. 

By 9/11 Memorial Staff