NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, August 28, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- He arrived before almost anyone else. As the towers still smoldered and the city reeled in shock, Dr. Emil Chynn — a young physician who had already lived through the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — ran toward Ground Zero instead of away from it. He became the first physician on the scene, setting up a makeshift triage station in the chaos and treating the injured with whatever he had.

He also had a camera.

Twenty-five years later, on the anniversary of that unforgettable day, Dr. Chynn is finally releasing his personal, never-before-seen photographs of Ground Zero — images that have sat unpublished for a quarter century, capturing devastation, exhaustion, courage, and quiet moments of humanity amid the ruins.

"Twenty-five years later, I still remember the faces, the chaos, and the extraordinary courage of the people who ran toward the destruction to help others," said Emil Chynn, MD, MBA, FACS. "The passage of time makes it even more important that we remember those who were lost and never forget the sacrifices made by the first responders and volunteers who were there."

A Doctor Who Ran Toward the Danger — Twice
This wasn't Dr. Chynn's first time responding to an attack on the World Trade Center. He had also provided medical aid after the 1993 bombing. When the towers fell in 2001, he didn't hesitate — he went straight downtown and threw himself into the response, helping establish emergency care in the middle of one of the worst disasters in American history.

The cost was real and lasting. Dr. Chynn later developed asthma from his time at the site — one of countless first responders whose health was permanently altered by their service that day.

Images That Have Waited 25 Years to Be Seen
While treating patients, Dr. Chynn also turned his lens on the unfolding tragedy — and on the people living through it. The result is a haunting, deeply personal visual record: an eye patient being treated in the wreckage, exhausted rescue workers between shifts, dawn breaking over the ruins, and the raw aftermath of Ground Zero itself.

For a generation now growing up with 9/11 as a history-book event rather than a memory, these photographs offer something textbooks can't: the view from someone who was actually there.

"I still remember everything, and we must continue to tell their stories — not only today, on the 25th anniversary, but for generations to come," Dr. Chynn said. "It is through photographs in which I do my part to tell their stories. These photographs are my contribution."

A Legacy of Service That Never Stopped
Dr. Chynn's commitment to 9/11 first responders didn't end at Ground Zero. In 2014, he launched a program offering LASEK vision-correction assistance to eligible first responders, tying his medical practice directly back to the community he served that day — while supporting 9/11-related charitable causes along the way.

On this 25th anniversary, Park Avenue LASEK is honoring the victims, survivors, families, first responders, and medical volunteers whose sacrifices defined that day — through the eyes, and the lens, of the man who was there first.

About Emil Chynn, MD, MBA, FACS
Emil Chynn, MD, MBA, FACS, is the Medical Director of Park Avenue LASEK in New York City. His medical career spans extensive work in refractive and corneal surgery alongside a lifelong commitment to volunteer medical service. His firsthand experience responding to both the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the September 11, 2001 attacks has shaped his enduring dedication to remembering and supporting first responders. Today, Park Avenue LASEK stands as New York City's leading vision correction practice specializing in safe, non-cutting LASEK.

Contact Dr. Chynn or Mike (Head of Marketing) to access an extended gallery of never before seen 9/11 images.

Press Contact:
Mike Beach (Cardwell Beach Marketing)
(646) 300-3054
mike@cardwellbeach.com

Emil Chynn
Park Avenue LASEK
+1 212-741-8628
info@parkavenuelasek.com
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