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Firefighter Saves Cop From Drunk Driving Collision

NY – New York City firefighter Philip Scarfi was driving to work Sunday morning on the Long Island Expressway westbound when he saw the crash: a pile of cars and scattered debris surrounded by a dust cloud.

Scarfi pulled over, grabbed the first aid kit from his Jeep and ran across six lanes of traffic. He found a Nassau police squad car with an unconscious officer inside.

“It was actually a lot worse on the inside than the outside of the vehicle,” Scarfi, of Deer Park, recalled Sunday night. “I found him pinned between the seat and the dashboard.”

Scarfi grabbed Officer Kenneth Baribault’s shoulders and tried to pull him from the car. But his legs were still pinned. “One of you guys, give me a hand here, grab his legs!” Scarfi called to a group of bystanders who had gathered near the crash.

A man came running and helped lift Baribault to the ground, Scarfi said.

Scarfi began what he called rescue breathing. He used Baribault’s portable radio to call for help.

“Officer down!” he yelled.

Scarfi, 46, works at Engine 235 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, but on Sunday he was on his way to work at the fire safety education unit in Bayside, Queens. He has been a volunteer firefighter in Deer Park for 29 years.

He’s seen his share of accidents. But it’s not every day you see a fellow firefighter or police officer down, he said.

According to police, a suspected drunken driver had slammed into Baribault’s police car just moments after he had pulled over another suspected drunken driver.

Scarfi rode with Baribault in an ambulance to Nassau University Medical Center.The officer remained in very serious condition and was unconscious Sunday night.

“Everyone who assisted in trying to save his life should be thanked,” Scarfi said. “They all did a good job.”

“I was fortunate to be there quickly and establish an airway and start breathing for him until more help arrived,” he said. “I just hope he survives. My prayers are with him and his family.”

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