Tree falls on Saratoga barn; no one hurt

A tree fell on a barn at Saratoga Thursday night, causing some damage to the barn and destroying a truck parked nearby, but fortunately no horses or humans were hurt.

The tree, which may have beens struck by lightning from severe storms in the area, caused damage to Barn 49 near the kitchen on the Oklahoma side of the Saratoga barn area. There were three horses for trainer Michael Mareina stabled at the far end of the barn, but they were not injured and have been subsequently moved to another barn, according to Rick Wickman, the stall manager for the New York Racing Association.

Glen Kozak, NYRA’s director of facilities/racing surfaces, said the barn should be repaired soon.

“It did hit the rafters above the loft,” Kozak said. “Structurally, we’re going to be able to repair this pretty quickly. The main rafter was broken, and that’s what needs to be replaced along with fixing the roof.”

Trainer Leon Blusiewicz, who has horses stabled across from that barn, said the tree also damaged a truck owned by one of his employees.

“It smashed the cab right in,” Blusiewicz said