10 SEPTEMBER 9, 2021 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Queens FDNY legend to be honored in documentary fi lm
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Long before he died during the Sept.
11 terrorist attacks at the World
Trade Center, FDNY First Deputy
Commissioner William M. Feehan was
a legendary fi gure among the ranks.
When he died at age 71 in the collapse
of the south tower, Feehan was the oldest
and highest-ranking fi refi ghters ever to
die in the line of duty at the FDNY. He
was also the fi rst to hold every single
rank during his remarkable 42-year
career.
Born in Long Island City in 1929,
Feehan grew up in Jackson Heights. He
graduated from St. John’s University
in 1952 and then joined the Army and
served in combat during the Korean
War.
Feehan was a substitute teacher before
joining the FDNY in 1959 starting
a journey that led to a brief tenure as
acting fi re commissioner during the
fi nal months of the Dinkins administration.
When the Giuliani administration
moved into City Hall, Feehan stayed on
in a leadership role.
On 9/11, Feehan was alongside Chief
of Department Peter Ganci, another
fi refi ghting hero from Queens, when he
spotted a bystander recording people as
they jumped to the death from the raging
inferno in both towers.
“Don’t you have any decency,” Feehan
shouted.
At his wake two days later at the
Martin Gleason Funeral Home in Whitestone,
groups of fi refi ghters arrived in
their gear straight from Ground Zero as
the NYPD blocked traffi c on Northern
Boulevard.
Former City Council Speaker Peter
Vallone observed the scene outside the
funeral home and described Feehan as
“a rock.”
“They all need a Bill Feehan to tell them
what to do,” Vallone said. “He was the
power behind the throne.”
A new documentary fi lm on Feehan
will premiere during the 20th anniversary
of 9/11.
Titled “Chief,” in honor of the rank
Feehan most identifi ed with, the highest
non-appointed rank that fi refi ghters
A new documentary fi lm about Queens FDNY legend William Feehan and his service to New Yorkers will
premiere 20 years after his death in the Sept. 11 attacks at the World Trade Center.
can achieve through promotions based
on their service and experience, the
nearly 25-minute documentary follows
Feehan’s actions at the World Trade
Center interspersed with highlights of
his legendary career in the FDNY.
The fi lm features archival footage
and interviews with current and former
FDNY brass — including Commissioner
Daniel Nigro and former Commissioner
Thomas Von Essen — as “always the fi rst
out the door” when there was a major
FDNY response and as the “knowledge
center of the fi re department” who advocated
for fi refi ghter safety with the
mantra, “What did we do for the guys in
the fi eld today? How did we work to make
their lives better?”
The documentary pays tribute to
his legacy of FDNY history — Feehan
was said to have known the location of
every fi re hydrant in the city — and as
an advocate for policies that improved
safety for fi refi ghters.
The documentary will also honor
Feehan’s legacy by increasing awareness
of FirstNet, the only nationwide,
high-speed broadband communications
platform dedicated to and purpose-built
for America’s fi rst responders and the
extended public safety community. The
lack of intra-service connectivity in the
radios used by fi rst responders wreaked
havoc during the attacks.
“Chief Feehan and 342 of his fellow
FDNY members lost their lives on 9/11
and we will never forget their bravery
and sacrifi ce,” FirstNet Authority CEO
Edward Parkinson said. “Following
9/11, public safety across the nation
joined together to push for a nationwide
communication network to help
fi rst responders keep themselves safe.
FirstNet was born of their eff orts. Today,
as we work to support America’s
fi rst responders, we keep the memory
of Chief Feehan and all those who selflessly
responded on 9/11 at the center of
all that we do.”
Chief will air on public television in
New York City during the week of Sept. 6
and it will be publicly screened in person
for the fi rst time at the Museum of the
City of New York on Saturday, Sept. 11.
Proceeds will support the FDNY’s
George F. Mand Library archives at
the Fire Academy on Randall’s Island
to honor Chief Feehan’s love and deep
knowledge of FDNY history.
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