Jailer hurt in fight, union blames Blaz
A RIKERS ISLAND correction officer suffered a broken nose Thursday night while trying to break up an inmate-on-inmate brawl — and her union blamed Mayor de Blasio for not keeping her safe.
The officer was punched in the nose (inset) by inmate Xavier Blount after she used her chemical agent on him and other prisoners who refused to stop fighting, according to the jail officer’s union.
Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association President Elias Husamudeen said the officer was in pain but recovering.
He said that inmates have been emboldened to attack officers because they do not fear repercussions. He blamed de Blasio for getting rid of punishments that inmates could face for attacks.
“We still have a mayor who is missing in action and out to lunch and refuses to protect correction officers,” Husamudeen said.
The city Correction Department said Blount was arrested for the assault.
“Just like COBA, we too want safer jails and are dedicating the resources necessary to make that happen, including nearly $4.5 million announced in February for new security measures,” agency spokesman Peter Thorne said. HIS GUT told him it wasn’t a beer belly.
Kevin Daly, a financial planner from Hoboken, knew something wasn’t right when he shed 34 pounds after an open-heart surgery in 2015 — but his protruding belly didn’t shrink an ounce.
“I thought they literally left stuffing and tools in me from surgery,” Daly, 63, told the Daily News Friday.
He said everyone dismissed the persistent paunch as a “beer belly,” the type of stubborn visceral fat that often comes with changing hormones and age.
“I don’t even like beer,” he explained. “I was lean. I’m 6-foot-3 and very athletic.”
Through a combination of diet and exercise, the one-time varsity jock at Martin Van Buren High School in Queens went from about 230 down to 198 pounds after his heart surgery.
His nagging intuition refused to let go. Eventually, he convinced Dr. Varinder Singh, the chair of cardiovascular medicine at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan, to order a CAT scan, over the objections of his insurance company.
The results left Daly feeling “vindicated and scared.” A large tumor — which looked to be about 12 pounds — had invaded his midsection.
During surgery in December, doctors discovered it was nearly triple the size they’d estimated.
The 30-pound monster mass had also wrapped around one of Daly's kidneys.
It took the strength of two residents to hold it aloft while Dr. Julio Teixeira painstakingly cut it out over four hours.
The “enormous” tumor was the largest Teixeira had ever removed.
“It's one thing to see the picture. It’s another thing to actually have it in your hands,” the amazed doctor told The News.
“Now they tell me it took 10 to 15 years to grow. And they never really get to that size (because) something else usually fails,” Daly explained.
On Friday, Daly attended his first post-op MRI with a News reporter by his side.
“They did a good job,” MRI technician Gregory Seid said as they reviewed the first images at Lenox Hill.
Daly called it a “gigantic relief” to see the scans that showed his organs back in their intended spots.
“Now, they’re all in the right place,” he said. “Before the surgery, my left descending colon was pushed under my sternum. I could touch it through my skin to make my food digest.”
Stabilized at about 187 pounds, Daly said he’s “never felt better.”
“I’m back down to my college weight, which is awesome,” he marveled.