Randy Van Name
Agency patch
Police Officer

Randy Van Name

Illness
End of Watch December 26, 2022
Age 66
Tour of Duty 20 yrs
The Vigil Panel 181 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Police Officer Randy Van Name died as the result of cancer that he developed following his assignment to the search and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site following the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks.

Officer Van Name had served with the New York City Police Department for 20 years and was assigned to the 5th Precinct.

September 11, 2001 - The Years After

Police Officer Randy Van Name was assigned to the search and recovery at the World Trade Center site after September 11, 2001. He was 45 years old that fall.

He died on December 26, 2022 - 21 years and 3 months later - of an illness contracted there. He was 66.

He is one of 599 officers honored here, and one of 450 at New York City 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 was survived by his wife, two daughters, and six grandchildren.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-E315F05D
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.
Police Officer Van Name gave the New York City Police Department 20 years.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Van Name.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Location New York, NY
Platform Identity nypd.newyork.ny.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 26, 2022
Tour of Duty 20 yrs
Age 66
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Illness
Cause Detail 9/11 related illness
Weapon Aircraft; Passenger jet
Offender 19 suicide attackers

Police Officer Randy Van Name 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 New York City Police Department, 521 of 1237 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 42.1% of this agency's fallen.

New York City Police Department
521
of 1,237 officers
42.1% Illness
NY — Statewide
629
of 2,147 officers
29.3% Illness
Nationwide
2,974
of 32,508 officers
9.1% Illness

National Cause Distribution

How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Randy Van Name's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Randy Van Name Compares

Age at End of Watch
66
This officer
Avg for Illness: 47.8 years
Years of Service
20
This officer
Avg for Illness: 18.9 years

Offender Outcome

19 suicide attackers

When Illness Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Randy Van Name is highlighted in Dec.

Jan
294
Feb
198
Mar
185
Apr
226
May
201
Jun
181
Jul
217
Aug
281
Sep
291
Oct
376
Nov
239
Dec
285

Incident Location