She survived the 9/11 attacks but died two months later in a plane crash. 25 years later, her family is telling her story

Hilda Mayol, a World Trade Center worker, survived the 9/11 attacks but did not survive the aftermath of that day, dying two months later in a plane crash near New York.

On November 12, 2001, Mayol boarded American Airlines Flight 587 from John F. Kennedy International Airport. The Airbus A300 crashed shortly after takeoff, in the Belle Harbor neighborhood of Queens, killing 265 people on board and on the ground.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the crash was caused by pilot error, including unnecessary and excessive rudder movements that led to the aircraft losing control. The investigation concluded the tail separated and the plane fell into Jamaica Bay.

Mayol had been at the World Trade Center earlier that day, working at a restaurant on the ground floor, and she was returning home to her family in Manhattan and in the Dominican Republic. Her daughter, Yari Mayol, said the family grew up hearing stories about her mother and how she supported relatives back home.

Twenty-five years after the crash, Mayol’s family is publicizing her story for the first time since 2001. A memorial wall in Belle Harbor bears her name, and family members continue to remember and honor her each year at services and gatherings near the crash site.