Roll of Honor
Melissa S. Morrow
Incident
Location: Virginia Incident Date: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 Weapon: Aircraft; Passenger jet Offender: 19 suicide attackers
Special Agent Melissa Morrow died as the result of brain cancer that she developed following her assignment to the search and recovery efforts at the Pentagon following the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks. She was assigned to FBI Washington Field Office's Evidence Response Team and spent 10 weeks recovering and processing evidence from the site in hazardous and contaminated conditions.
Special Agent Morrow had served with the FBI for 22 years and was assigned to the Kansas City Field Office at the time of her passing.
September 11, 2001 - The Years After
Special Agent Melissa S. Morrow was assigned to the search and recovery at the World Trade Center site after September 11, 2001. He was 32 years old that fall.
He died on March 22, 2018 - 16 years and 6 months later - of an illness contracted there. He was 48.
He is one of 599 officers honored here, and one of 19 at United States Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The most recent of these deaths was October 24, 2025.
Officers who worked the search, rescue, and recovery at the World Trade Center site breathed contaminated air for weeks and months afterward. Many developed cancers and respiratory disease, and they have gone on dying of it ever since.
Seventy-two officers were killed on the morning itself. Hundreds more have died in the years that followed. They are honored here together, because the same attack killed them all. With some it simply took longer.
Survivors
She is survived by her parents and sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-FED-4507E36D- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
You walked into it and it took years to finish the job.
Special Agent Morrow gave the United States Department of Justice 22 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Special Agent Morrow.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Special Agent Melissa S. Morrow is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In DC, 137 of 1,419 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 9.7% of this state's fallen. That is 0.6 percentage points above the national rate of 9.1%.
At United States Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Investigation, 20 of 89 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 22.5% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Melissa S. Morrow's cause is highlighted.
How Melissa S. Morrow Compares
Offender Outcome
19 suicide attackers
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Melissa S. Morrow is highlighted in Mar.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
88 officers from United States Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Investigation are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
