New horse barn rises from the ashes

A Leavittsburg man was
sentenced to 12 years in prison for setting this fire and others.

By ED RUNYAN

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

WARREN — Barb Clifford still finds it hard to believe that anyone would purposely set a fire in a barn full of animals.

After being the victim of such an act, however, she believes that such evil exists. She also knows that good people will still come to the aid of someone in need.

On May 17, 2005, Clifford’s father, Wade Bascomb, awoke about 5 a.m. to a fire just starting to consume the front part of the horse barn on his Park Road property in Warren Township.

The 84-year-old retired military man entered the mostly wooden structure in his pajamas and led one of the 20 horses to safety before flames and debris forced him to retreat.

When firefighters and others arrived, they rescued the 10 horses housed in an attached building, but the nine horses in the other structure all perished.

Because the barn was a boarding stable, all of the horses except one belonged to customers.

At first the cause of the fire went undetermined.

But about five weeks later, just across the Mahoning River from the Park Road barn, a second barn fire occurred — this one considered suspicious — at the David Klingensmith dairy farm on Nelson Mosier Road. The death toll there was 52 cows.

That’s when Clifford, who owned the boarding stable with her father, began to wonder whether their fire might have been set on purpose.

Investigators asked her if she thought it was arson. “And I said, ‘Look around. Look at all the people who are here to help. We don’t have any enemies,’” she said.

From far and wide, she received offers of help — for animal feed and for a place to house the horses that survived.

Arsonist caught

Eventually, investigators learned that Roddy M. Rudkin Jr., 24, of nearby Briggs Road in Leavittsburg, had set both fires, along with many house fires in Warren city and Warren Township. Clifford said investigators believe two other men were also involved.

Prosecutors said Rudkin confessed to setting the fires — saying he was haunted by the sound of the dying cows. He was sentenced last October to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to 24 charges that included four counts of aggravated arson.

Clifford said investigators told her Rudkin didn’t set the fires out of dislike for animals, or for her and her father. He did it only for the pleasure of setting fires.

“The investigator said he [Rudkin] was the only guy he’d ever seen who was a true pyromaniac,” she said.

Nonetheless, Clifford wonders how Rudkin could have walked through her barn that night, past several of the horses and into the hay loft — where the fire started — without consciousness of the suffering he was about to inflict.

“He had to walk right past that little foal,” she said of the youngest animal that died that night. “How could he do that?”

Though Clifford and her father did not have insurance on the barn, they decided to rebuild — this time with some different materials.

This time the structure would be built with a steel frame and steel walls — unlike the wood-framed original buildings. This time, the barn would have no hay loft and very little hay. Instead, only small amounts of hay are brought into the building when it is needed.

Also, visitors to the new structure are greeted by two large dogs who keep an eye on the property 24 hours a day.

Clifford admits a few other things changed, too. “Visitors,” she said. Strangers used to be welcome to walk up to the barn to visit with the horses without interference. Today Clifford and her nephew, Duffy Bascom, are more cautious.

The fire did not hurt their business much because the 20-stall facility is still full year-round.

“It was horrible,” Clifford said of the fire. “But some good came of it.”

The community showed its support for her business of 33 years by holding a benefit horse show to raise money to help with costs. In six months, the new structure was up.

Because this one is an all-steel building, it doesn’t look as much like a traditional barn as much as an indoor soccer facility or department store.

Clifford said the appearance of the new building has produced some friendly jabs from Bascom’s friends at the Farm Bureau.

“His farm friends told him it looks like a Wal-Mart, but it would be difficult to burn,” Clifford said.

runyan@vindy.com