Brave teenager battling leukaemia gets surprise visit from 9/11 fireman

A BRAVE teenager battling cancer and who is housebound got a surprise hospital visit from a New York fireman who plunged into the Ground Zero rubble after the 9/11 attacks 10 years ago.

Niamh McNulty, given a bone marrow operation in June to beat her rare form of leukaemia, met Irish-American fireman Gerry O’Riordan when he dropped into Crumlin Children’s Hospital in Dublin with a €$10,000 (€7,200) gift for the burns unit.

Niamh’s mum Bernie was in the hospital corridor when she saw a group of NY fireman in the corridor and quickly recognised Gerry who is married to her Donegal town cousin Eimear.