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She was expecting it to be her firefighter husband, also named Joseph, calling to say he was on his way home from work.

Instead, a fire marshal shared the news that Joseph Graffagnino was hurt in a fire at the former Deutsche Bank building by the World Trade Center.

“At first I didn't know that it was that serious, but then we he wouldn't answer my questions,” said Linda Graffagnino. “I kind of started getting really nervous -- is my husband alive?”

Lieutenant Joseph Graffagnino and firefighter Robert Beddia were killed in a seven-alarm fire, which investigators say started with a lit cigarette tossed aside by one of the workers preparing to dismantle the building, which was damaged on September 11, 2001.

Graffagnino and Beddia were trapped on the 14th floor with no water supply, as the building's standpipe had been disconnected and the staircases were sealed off.

Firefighters might have known the building’s conditions, but mandatory building inspections had not been made.

“Had those staircases not been sealed, had that standpipe worked and they had water -- my family wouldn't have been broken,” said Linda Graffagnino.

The fire department, state attorney general and Manhattan district attorney are still investigating the fire, and a grand jury has been meeting since November to determine who is to blame.

Published reports say charges could be filed as early as next month against city officials and the private contractors who were dismantling the building:

“There's a lot of people at fault. You know, everybody will get what's coming to them,” said Linda Graffagnino. “You know, what goes around comes around. And you know, I don't mean to sound harsh, and I am not an angry, bitter person at all. But the people who allowed this to happen, it will eventually come back to them.”

Linda Graffignino relies on her children, whom she purposely keeps out of the spotlight, to keep her strong.

But she her husband would have wanted her to be happy. She plans to spend her late husband’s 35th birthday, just two days after the fire anniversary, with a niece who was born on the same day.

A memorial and plaque dedication ceremony will take place here at the Ladder 5/Engine 2 firehouse on Monday. Hundreds are expected to attend.