Warwick woman was first to see Borderland Farm fire

Warwick — Christine Baruffaldi was tired. She and a group of friends didn’t want to stop for dinner on the eight-hour ride home from their friend’s graduation in Virginia. But the parents in the group insisted. So they stopped, ate and continued their journey home. It was nearly 11 p.m. when she drove up Route 94 from Sussex into Warwick on Mother’s Day night. Almost home, she thought. But when she looked to her left, she saw wood glowing with flames and realized the house was on fire. “I don’t know what I was thinking, but I just slammed on my brakes and left my truck running in the middle of Route 94,” said Baruffaldi, 21. “I left the door open and ran up to the house. I knew this old house would be in flames in minutes.” She was right. But why did this young woman run toward the fire instead of just calling 911? “I saw Virginia’s car there. I saw lots of cars there and I knew these people weren’t sleeping in the barn.” Baruffaldi is a horseperson. She has been riding since she was just five years old. She is part of a closely knit group of people, sort of an extended family. She knew Virginia Martin, owner of the farm, and she knew where her room was. She focused her efforts on that part of the house. She called the Warwick police from her cell phone and then pounded on the front door of the Borderland Farm house. She pounded and yelled, but she didn’t know if anyone could hear her. She called her mom, Peg Baruffaldi, who was sleeping in her Pine Island Turnpike home. Peg quickly got out of bed and headed down to Borderland. The smoke was so dark and thick. When the windows started to break from the heat, she called her brother, a New York City firefighter, and ran to the back of the house to try to notify people from that side. The heat in the back, she said, was so intense that she couldn’t even stand there in just her shorts and tank top. When she came back around to the front, two people were on the roof. “I had a conversation with them to help keep them calm,” said Baruffaldi. “They told me the banging had waked them.” By this time, a man had pulled over and helped Baruffaldi in her search to find a ladder to reach up to Kaitlyn Martin, 16, and her stepfather, Patrick Henry, on the third floor roof. The Warwick Fire Department pulled up and rescued both of them, just before fire engulfed the roof. The firefighters and police also rescued Virginia Martin from her first floor window. “The fire department was there so quickly, I couldn’t believe it,” said Baruffaldi, a college student who is heading to Cortland in the fall to pursue her studies in physical education. “It all went by so quickly. I haven’t talked to Virginia but I’m so glad she got out.” It wasn’t until the next morning that Baruffaldi found out the tragic news — Pam Henry, Kaitlyn’s mom and the barn manager, was killed in the fire. Firefighters found her on the second floor of the house. Baruffaldi said Patrick Henry told her the night of the fire that they had been sleeping but heard the banging and ran down to the second floor. When they realized they couldn’t get down, he and Kaitlyn went back up to the third floor and out the window. They thought Pam had gotten out. Baruffaldi went to Pam Henry’s memorial service a few days ago. She introduced herself to Kaitlyn, Pam’s daughter who was saved thanks to Baruffaldi’s bravery and quick thinking. “She was very thankful,” said Baruffaldi, a waitress at The Landmark Inn. And quite emotional. Peg Baruffaldi was understandably proud of Christine. “You know, all you see in the papers are stories about kids doing bad things,” she said. “I’m proud of my daughter for what she did. She’s always been a great kid.” Warwick Fire Chief Bill DiMartini said things would have been very different if Christine Baruffaldi hadn’t driven by Borderland Farm when she did. “The people in the house didn’t know it was on fire,” said DiMartini. “There were no smoke alarms. The woman banged on the front door to alert them. It’s a good thing people saw it from the road or we could have lost three more lives.” Although she down plays what she did, Baruffaldi did more than just make a phone call. She put herself in harm’s way because she thought maybe others were in danger. And the timing part of it all was not lost on her. “I didn’t want to stop to eat,” she said. “If we hadn’t stopped, I probably would have driven by before the fire was visible from Route 94. Things happen for a reason I guess. I just wish I had been able to do something to help Pam get out.”