Metro

‘Zero’ hour at long last

President Obama’s arrival at Ground Zero tomorrow will be the biggest event at the World Trade Center since former President George W. Bush stood on the rubble of the Twin Towers three days after the terror attacks and vowed to bring those responsible to justice.

Bob Beckwith, the retired firefighter who stood beside Bush atop the wreckage that day in what would become an iconic image of the nation’s resolve, said yesterday he’s delighted the pledge was finally kept — even if it took another president to finish the job.

“It took them a long time, but when you are looking for a needle in a haystack, it takes a long time,” said the retired city firefighter from Baldwin, LI.

Beckwith, 79, a Bush fan, was disap pointed Dubya couldn’t stay in office long enough to fulfill his promise to take out Osama bin Laden — but said it was “a delight” to hear Obama and the nation’s intelli gence and military personnel fin ished the job.

Obama invited the former pres ident to join him at Ground Zero tomorrow, but Bush declined, Fox News reported. Beckwith, who was among the volunteers working on the pile, praised Obama’s decision to send in Navy SEALs instead of bombing bin Laden’s Pakistani compound.

“You have to give credit where credit is due,” Beckwith said. “In my eyes, he did the right thing.”

Beckwith, who retired from the FDNY in 1994, went to Ground Zero on Sept. 14 to help with the rescue and recovery effort. He was there when a Secret Service agent asked him if a wrecked firetruck was safe enough to stand on.

But before Beckwith could step down from the truck, Bush was there beside him, telling him to stand with him.

Through a bullhorn, and above the chants of “USA! USA!” from rescue workers, Bush promised, “The people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon.”

Obama will meet with family members of the 9/11 victims during his visit. Beckwith said he has yet to hear if he’s among the invited guests. But others began to receive e-mail invites last night from the White House.

James Riches, a retired fire chief whose firefighter son was killed in the attack, said he’d gotten an invitation and hopes to speak to Obama. “I would thank him for taking out bin Laden. The president deserves credit for doing this. He said he would do it, and he did it,” Riches said.

The White House’s plans for the Ground Zero event were such a mystery yesterday that not even Mayor Bloomberg could shed any light on them.

“I think it’s perfectly appropriate for him to come,” Bloomberg said. “It’s a nice thing for him to do . . . But it’s up to the White House to release their schedule.”

One source who deals with Ground Zero families said, “It sounds like it’s going to be a set number of people, a small group.”

Meanwhile, Bloomberg announced yesterday that Obama plans to return to Ground Zero on the 10th anniversary of the attacks when the memorial there opens.

“I certainly think it’s terribly important for him to come on 9/11/11,” Bloomberg said.

Additional reporting
by Carl Campanile

bill.sanderson@nypost.com