By Carol Eisenberg
Newsday
WASHINGTON, D.C. — John Feal of Nesconset had vowed never to return to the nation’s capital.
The former demolition supervisor, whose left foot was crushed by an eight-ton steel beam while he worked to remove debris from Ground Zero, said it was simply too painful to be reminded of what he sees as the Bush administration’s abandonment of him and other 9/11 responders.
But yesterday, Feal, 41, gave it another shot, sitting in the gallery of the U.S. Capitol, along with eight other first responders, who are battling illnesses and other disabilities related to their service. Their presence was both rebuke and de facto demand to the Bush administration.
“I want to hear him say, ‘I’m sorry,’” Feal said. “I want to hear him say that he’s going to leave a billion dollars or more for 9/11 responders when he leaves office.”
But Feal, who has set up his own foundation to help ailing 9/11 workers, admitted he is not terribly optimistic.
Earlier in the day, he and other men who became ill after working at Ground Zero appeared at a news conference alongside New York lawmakers and labor leaders, demanding the administration explain why it halted plans last month for a health monitoring and treatment program for Ground Zero workers around the country. They also urged passage of a long-term program to monitor those exposed to toxins after the Twin Towers’ collapse.
“This isn’t a political issue,” said Feal, who has developed lung problems in addition to having 11 surgeries on his feet. “This is a moral and human issue. This is about people dying.”
Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton), praised Feal for the work of the Feal Good Foundation, but added, “he ought not have to do that. ... The public sector has the resources and it has the obligation.”
Lt. James Riches of Brooklyn, an FDNY deputy chief who lost his firefighter son Jimmy that day, predicted that more people would eventually die from toxic exposure than were killed on 9/11. He has developed severe lung disease after search and recovery work.
“When I was down there digging through the pile, there was a gigantic sign, ‘Never forget 9/11.’ We hope our politicians don’t forget us now,” he said.