Incident
Lieutenant Roy McLaughlin passed away as the result of cancer which he developed following his assignment to aid in the search and recover efforts at the World Trade Center site following the 9/11 Terrorist Attack.
Lieutenant McLaughlin had served with the Yonkers Police Department for 17 years. He is survived by his wife, four children, parents, and three brothers. All three of his brothers and his father also served with the Yonkers Police Department.
September 11, 2001 - The Years After
Lieutenant Roy D. McLaughlin was assigned to the search and recovery at the World Trade Center site after September 11, 2001. He was 25 years old that fall.
He died on September 10, 2015 - 13 years and 11 months later - of an illness contracted there. He was 38.
He is one of 599 officers honored here, and one of 3 at Yonkers Police Department.
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
He is survived by his wife, four children, parents, and three brothers.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-85C7850A- 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.
Lieutenant McLaughlin gave the Yonkers Police Department 17 years.
Thank you for your service to the Yonkers community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Lieutenant McLaughlin.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Lieutenant Roy D. McLaughlin 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 NY, 629 of 2,147 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 29.3% of this state's fallen. That is 20.2 percentage points above the national rate of 9.1%.
At Yonkers Police Department, 6 of 20 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 30% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Roy D. McLaughlin's cause is highlighted.
How Roy D. McLaughlin Compares
Offender Outcome
19 suicide attackers
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Roy D. McLaughlin is highlighted in Sep.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
19 officers from Yonkers Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.















