eBay blocks sale of debris | September 11 2001

July 2020 ยท 2 minute read

eBay blocks sale of debris

Debris from the wreckage of the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon was offered for sale on eBay, the internet auction website, immediately after the terror attacks, it emerged today.

The first pieces of rubble went on sale within an hour of the first plane crash, USA Today reported. Most of the debris came from New York's twin towers but some came from the Pentagon.

Kevin Pursglove, of eBay, said: "It started probably within the hour."

Staff at the company stepped in to remove the entries advertising the grisly souvenirs.

Some items linked to the disaster have been allowed to remain on sale, including copies of USA Today, the New York Daily News and the New York Post from the day after the attacks, and refrigerator magnets from the World Trade Centre.

A message on the front page of the US version of the eBay website reads: "September 11 was a terrible day for the United States and many people in the eBay community. The thoughts of everyone at eBay go out to the victims of Tuesday's tragedy and their families."

In a similar case, a computer game which asks players to defend the World Trade Centre from kamikaze pilots has been withdrawn.

The game, titled WTC Defender, had been available to download over the internet at www.angelfire.com/games4/wtc. Players had to shoot down planes heading for the twin towers. If an aircraft managed to get through, the buildings blew up.

A note on the site says: "WTC Defender - the game has been removed. Please note - the game was not meant to offend anyone, my deepest condolences to all of you who have lost someone in this tragedy."

A Bulgarian internet club managed to download the game before it was withdrawn, the Bulgarian state-run BTA news agency reported.

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