station nightclub fire survivors list

Joe Kinan was badly burned in the deadly Station Nightclub fire in Rhode Island that left 100 dead and 230 injured in February 2003 . Phil Barr: A lot of people moved back towards the main entrance it became really clear that we were not going to be able [to] get out the front door. Today marks the 20th anniversary of The Station nightclub fire in West Warwick, RI, which killed 100 people. [4] The nightclub was purchased by brothers Michael and Jeffrey Derderian in March 2000. [29] The initial death toll was 96 people; Four more individuals died in the hospital in the weeks following, bringing the toll to 100. He wrote: "This is a company that is well aware of the dangers of polyurethane foam. He owned his own construction company, and he was often in the backyard with his sons, improving the landscape or building two ponds that he filled with koi fish. I can't speak Everything was, you know, sore and hoarse I picked up the pen in very weak, you know, kind of handwriting I wrote, "I hope to make progress every day.". That is the furthest exit away from the stage But it's a relatively straight line. It just so happens that we're . The morning after the fire, the lead singer of Great White, Jack Russell, claimed the brothers had given the band permission to set off the fireworks. Linda Saran still places much of it on the Derderian brothers. And, according to the brothers, it was one of the first exits used when the fire started. Michael Derderian also spoke via phone to an investigator. I went around back. So, it was very quickly they were in the circle of people we should look at. In February 2006 three years after the station nightclub burned down many in Rhode Island were shocked to learn that instead of a trial, a plea deal had been reached with Daniel Biechele, the tour manager for the band Great White. And I was paying staff pricing for beer because I knew a guy. (crying) So I can't expect anybody else to. After the investigation ended and prosecutors had no more questions, after reporters stopped calling and the years passed since that deadly night, the man who was the sound technician and stage manager at The Station nightclub was left with his thoughts. Vanner spoke about how his life derailed after 11:07 p.m. on Feb. 20, 2003. A decade ago, a survivor . But 15 years later, she said, its time for her to move out of its shadow. The brothers have always maintained that they never gave the band permission to use pyrotechnics. The club was sold. View All 100 Memorials for the The Station Nightclub Fire Site. Barr, who was in his junior year, had dreams of a career on Wall Street and swam competitively for his college swim team. Many of the families believed that the punishment was just; others had hoped for a more severe sentence. The following day the brothers responded at a press conference: JEFF DERDERIAN: No permission was ever requested by the band or any of its agents to use pyrotechnics at The Station, and no permission was ever given. I figured I was on my own at that point.. But I made a choice. [4] In 1985, it was converted to a pub, which closed sometime in the late 1980s, and a nightclub was opened in its place in 1991. I couldn't play an instrument. The message is, Dont forget. Never forget these people or forget what happened., Stay up to date on all the latest news from Boston.com. [37] The report had been inspired by the E2 nightclub stampede in Chicago that killed 21 people three days earlier. Flames soon appeared on the walls on either side of the stage and spread quickly along the foam that lined the walls and ceiling, intended to dampen sound. Tracy died never giving up. The brothers say there was evidence that the grand jury never heard. Scott James: The fire alarm you hear it kick in. Two decades after 100 people were killed in the West Warwick, R.I. fire, those affected by the incident are reflecting on that tragic night. About a month after the fire Barr went home from the hospital. In February 2008, Providence television station. The Station Nightclub Fire is Remembered in the Documentary - Yurview That was his gift. Jim Axelrod: The fire spread so quickly because rather than fire-retardant sound foam, on the wall of the club was highly flammable packing foam. S01:E02 - Joplin Tornado. When King arrived, he saw the devastating scene. [2] Larocque later told the Rhode Island State Police that he had not spotted the polyurethane foam during the November 2002 inspection because he was upset after finding an illegal inward swinging door that he had previously asked to be removed from the building. Absolutely not. I found my soul was wanting.. It was the fourth deadliest fire in a nightclub in US history. Now, Russo leads the Station Fire Memorial Foundation, which oversees a memorial that stands where the nightclub once went up in flames, The Boston Globe reported. Linda will forever wear the scars of that horrible night. The Station Nightclub Fire Tragedy Memorial Site - Legacy.com [85] By April 2016, $1.65 million of the $2 million fundraising goal had been achieved and construction of the Station Fire Memorial Park had commenced. Saran was one of the more than 200 who were seriously hurt in the fire. We couldn't make it. Linda Saran: They have said they were sorry. America's Deadliest Rock Concert: The Guest List explores the Station nightclub fire through gripping survivor accounts and family members and friends of victims who have memorialized their loss through pursuits ranging from an exhibit of commemorative body art to re-immersion in the rock culture that initially brought them and their loved ones Jeff Derderian: You know a day doesn't go by that we don't think about it in some way, shape or form. Jim Axelrod: If you have a message that you want the people of Rhode Island to hear, there were plenty of ways to get it out long before now. Michael Derderian: But that door became impassable almost within seconds because clearly there's foam that's burning at 800 or 1,500 degrees. [9], Thousands of mourners attended an interfaith memorial service at St. Gregory the Great Church in Warwick on February 24, 2003, to remember those lost in the fire. And if we could change it, we would. Jeff Derderian: We feel a sense of guilt about what happened in the sense that you carry the guilt of knowing that these people aren't here anymore, and these people are hurt for the rest of their life. Investigators eventually discovered the fax was sent by Barry Warner, a former employee at American Foam the company that had sent the Derderians the packing foam made of flammable polyurethane. It had to end, for me and it ended in the most beautiful way.. You take one square inch of the foam, you hold it up with a roach clip and light it on fire with a wooden match. He said if there's. One near the bar. Patrick Lynch: I don't think anybody in anything that they did wanted anybody to die that night or get injured. Biechele pleaded guilty to 100 counts of misdemeanor manslaughter, and Michael and Jeff Derderian pleaded no contest. So, the only way to pick up a can of soda would be to do this [lifting both arms out parallel in front of her]. It was liquid fire. I needed for that day to come, she said. Jeff Derderian: Because in my mind I had nothing to hide. The first time I went to counseling, I made the therapist cry, Del Sesto said. Things that bring back memories of that night we try to stay away from. The Station Fire: 100 victims in photos - The Providence Journal Warner lived next to The Station and had met the brothers. [4] Another restaurant opened in the building in 1974. WEST WARWICK, R.I. The owners of The Station nightclub say their decision to finally speak publicly about the deadly fire there nearly . I couldn't hear noise. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Within six minutes, the entire building was engulfed in flames. [48] The grand jury also did not return charges against Russell. [89] "I don't think I could ever sing that song again," said Russell. : In 2021, 48 Hours described the total civil payments to the victims and families as $176 million. Superior Court Judge Francis J. Darigan Jr. sentenced Biechele to fifteen years in prison, with four to serve and eleven years suspended, plus three years' probation, for his role in the fire. I had no control over my muscles. But Jeff Derderian, who was helping out at the bar, says he and an employee tried to get to the stage with a fire extinguisher. He trusted in his friends. But never once do they say, "we screwed up." [81] In August 2016, the site was reported to have been being used as a PokeStop in Pokmon Go, to uproar from victims' families. I come down every year and play the [bagpipes], he told WCVB. At first, there was no panic. In 2003, 100 people died and over 200 were injured at a rock concert in West Warwick, Rhode Island. He turned back to see the crowd bottle-necked at the stage. Jody King: Nine different families have come up to me and said "thank you for having a great brother. Marc Goldbaum is the development producer. WEST WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) - Saturday marks the 18-year anniversary of the Station Nightclub fire that left lasting scars on numerous families and the state of Rhode Island. On the 19th Anniversary of The Station Nightclub Fire, "America'S Jeff Derderian: That door was meant to block the noise from the neighbors. [49] The tour started five months after the fire, and each concert began with a prayer for survivors and families. Tweet. I never thought it would get so bad., He told bartender Julie Mellini that they had to leave, and she and several patrons followed Vanner out the kitchen door. The fire was now out of control; it had spread along the foam that lined the walls and ceiling intended to dampen sound. He got a tire iron from his car, smashed the glass, and started pulling people out. So many ways this could have been avoided, Matthew Hoffman, an East Greenwich, R.I. resident, told WPRI. Also outside was club owner Jeff Derderian. That's when I turned back. On February 20, 2003 at about 11:10 p.m., Jody King got a call that something was going on at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island. Russell 's bandmate Ty Longley (guitar) was one of the people who perished in The Station blaze, which became the fourth deadliest fire in U.S. history. She took a photograph of the stone of a man who died and sent it to his daughter in California. Foam the Derderians had installed along the club's walls and ceilings to conceal noise was highly flammable and "was equal to gallons of gasoline. Jeff Derderian: They didn't even bring up the fax to him. His work was instrumental in amassing 176 million dollars in settlements from persons and corporations responsible for the fire. They were told to take it down. Phil Barr: and I felt the door and I just heaved my shoulder into it. And they're quick to point out the club was inspected by their insurance company, and multiple times by the local Fire Marshal Denis Laroque. The Station nightclub in West Warwick burned down on Feb. 20, 2003, during a concert by rock band Great White, leaving 100 people dead and more than 200 injured. The Foam.". The trunk bears the names of the fire victims. An off-duty police officer standing outside had heard her kicking at the window. Patrick Lynch: Did he do his job perfectly? Dont take life for granted and I miss her every day She was my world and now shes my angel.. [27] A portion of the nightclub roof collapsed at 11:57 p.m., and a second portion in the building's sunroom collapsed at 12:07 a.m..[24] Patients were transported to Kent Hospital, which was filled to maximum capacity due to the fire. This is the time to leave. [104] It was last introduced in the House in 2015 by then-U.S. Reps. James Langevin of Rhode Island and Tom Reed of New York.[104].

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