World Trade Center memorial for those with 9/11-related illnesses installed in lower Manhattan

The 9/11 Memorial Glade is under construction, and will open May 30

In a little more than a month, a new component of the World Trade Center site will debut: On May 30, the Memorial Glade, a section of the larger 9/11 Memorial, will open at the southwestern corner of the WTC site, honoring those who worked on the post-9/11 recovery efforts, along with others who have died or otherwise been affected by 9/11-related illnesses. (The date marks the 17th anniversary of when the recovery efforts ended at the WTC site.)

The memorial itself will be include six enormous monoliths, weighing as much as 17 tons, that are meant to "symbolize strength and determination through adversity," according to the 9/11 Memorial. And this past weekend, those monoliths were placed on the site at the corner of Liberty and West streets in advance of the glade's opening. (The location is also symbolic—it's where the main ramp that provided access to bedrock was placed during the recovery efforts.)

The monoliths were fabricated from stone sourced from a Vermont quarry, and each one will also incorporate steel from the original World Trade Center site. The design of the glade, which was created by architect Michael Arad (who also designed Reflecting Absence, the pools of the 9/11 Memorial), situates the monoliths at points throughout the site, with a cobblestone pathway connecting them.

Now that they've been put into place, the bulk of the work left to complete the memorial is finishing touches: WTC steel will be added to the monoliths, the path through the glade will be placed, and a plaque with an inscription will be created. All told, the museum estimates that the new memorial will cost $5 million, with much of that coming from private investors. New York state has also contributed funding, and former Daily Show host Jon Stewart, who has long been an advocate for those sickened in the wake of 9/11, will also lead fundraising efforts.