Am I going to sit here and cry about this? [11] Dominic Santana, the owner of The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey, told reporters that Great White had used pyrotechnics during their February 14, 2003 performance at the venue without his permission, and their contract and rider did not mention pyrotechnics displays. That's when I turned back. Scott James: And the nightclub operator there was so angry when he saw what had happened in Rhode Island, he went public, and he even made public the contract that he had with Great White that showed there was no evidence of fireworks that were going to be part of the show. / CBS News. That was his gift. Dan Biechele, center, at his sentencing. They were told to take it down. She wrote a book, meets with burn victims, talks to fire departments and fire safety groups across the country. But the night of the fire it was up to help cut down the noise. Biechele was released from prison on March 19, 2008. It seems senseless that something like this could happen. Biechele. [32] In April 2003, The Derderians were fined $1.07 million for failing to carry workers' compensation insurance for their employees. Scott James: They only have about 60 seconds to get out of the building if they're going to live. [24] The first West Warwick fire engine arrived at the scene at 11:13 p.m., followed by three other trucks shortly thereafter. [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. Nine friends didnt. The State of Rhode Island and the town of West Warwick agreed to pay $10 million as settlement. Michael Derderian: But that door became impassable almost within seconds because clearly there's foam that's burning at 800 or 1,500 degrees. 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. A true hero would have gone for it, Vanner said. These days, she uses her job as a teacher at John F. Deering Middle School to make it so those who didnt suffer so directly will remember it too. The tragedy, she said, heightened her appreciation of the life she was allowed, for whatever reason, to continue. Kat Teurfs is the associate producer. [60] As of 2013[update], Biechele lived in Florida with his wife and two children. Susan Nicol. [56], The sentence drew mixed reactions in the courtroom. MICHAEL DERDERIAN: I plead not guilty, your honor. [2], Prior to being converted into a nightclub and concert venue, the Station building had been used as a restaurant and tavern. The trunk bears the names of the fire victims. [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. It would have been my legacy, Vanner said. A California woman who had been injured in an accident and hadnt left her house in five years wrote her, she said. 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. [95] When Russell launched his version of the band in 2012, Kendall's group responded that Russell had no right to use the name. Jim Axelrod: Did either of you know anything about running a nightclub? [9] Michael Derderian told 48 Hours that it was "Undisputable" that the building's use of flammable packing foam instead of flame retardant sound foam was the cause of the fire's spread, but the brothers claimed that they had ordered sound foam and had received the packing foam instead. [48], Following the tragedy, Governor Donald Carcieri declared a moratorium on pyrotechnic displays at venues that hold fewer than 300 people. [52] Speaking to the public for the first time since the fire, Biechele stated: For three years, I've wanted to be able to speak to the people that were affected by this tragedy, but I know that there's nothing that I can say or do that will undo what happened that night. That's what the code says. And that's when I noticed the black on my arms. and I tripped over what I assume was a bar stool. She saw friends who had lost people they loved, others who had been burned and scarred by the fire, and felt embarrassed that she got out physically unharmed. Phil Barr [teary-eyed]: Getting another opportunity to live my life came with enormous responsibility. Jeff Derderian: You know a day doesn't go by that we don't think about it in some way, shape or form. [20], Great White started their performance at 11:07 p.m. on February 20. you could not see your hand in front of your face. As Great White started their first song, their tour manager Daniel Biechele set off four large fireworks called gerbs. [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. 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 Jody King says his brother enjoyed working for the Derderians. [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]. Survivor Phil Barr arrived to The Station early the night of the concert. That is the furthest exit away from the stage But it's a relatively straight line. [44] The NIST report was released on March 3, 2005 and was made available in two parts on June 30, 2005. But many, including the brothers, feel strongly Laroque should also have been charged. Sparks from the gerbs ignited the insulation foam, and flames were visible on the wall above the stage within nine seconds of their ignition. Jody King: "Anybody see Tracy?" Brandon Fravale, a survivor of The Station nightclub fire, speaks with NBC 10 on how he copes with survivor's guilt. Biechele pleaded guilty to 100 counts of misdemeanor manslaughter and was sentenced to four years in prison. The charge is pending. There is one consistent thing I have learned after 18 years in the [82] The stop was removed from the game by developer Niantic later that month. PROVIDENCE Over the years Dave Kane has had to find a place to store his outrage over losing his 18-year-old son, Nicholas, in The Station nightclub fire in 2003. [95][49], Neither version of Great White performed in any of the six New England states for over a decade following the fire. I cant do it for the rest of my life, she said. View Image Gallery. Their story starts three years before the fire. Then there's that interior, inward swinging door by the stage that Former Attorney General Patrick Lynch says was responsible for loss of life the night of the fire. I will never forget that night, and I will never forget the people that were hurt by it. Well, I guess once we all started to turn toward the door, and we got bottle-necked into the front door, people just kept pushing, and eventually everyone popped out of the door, including myself. Within weeks, the National Fire Protection Association committee met to regulate code for "assembly occupancies." They want to talk to you." Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Jim Axelrod: And that's when the despair sinks in. [61] Michael Derderian received fifteen years in prison, with four to serve and eleven years suspended, plus three years' probationthe same sentence as Biechele. Those at the nightclub had to act soon, as smoke was visible in the exit doorways in just over one minute. [59], Biechele's parole and probation expired in March 2011. But I made a choice. The first was her life before Feb. 20, 2003. [21] Twenty seconds after the pyrotechnics ended, the band stopped playing and lead singer Jack Russell calmly remarked into the microphone, "Wow that's not good. In the end, the survivors and victims' families settled for a total of $176 million. Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider, who is featured in a REELZ documentary about the Warwick, Rhode Island Station nightclub fire, which killed some 100 attendees of a Great White concert in 2003, Like you feel that kinship that, you know, "God, I really hope this guy makes it." And then on one side, I noticed it come over the top, and that's when I said, "I have to leave." The answer is no. Phil Barr: I don't like to talk about it, but I remember feeling weight on top of me, and I'm pretty sure I crawled out from under another person to pull myself up. [13], In February 2003, Great White was on an eighteen date concert tour, and they had been using a pyrotechnic display during their performances that some club owners had denied them permission to use, citing safety concerns. I don't care what I'm going to see.". Michael Derderian: He finds the deficiencies, you have to correct the deficiencies and then signs off so that you so you can get your liquor license that happened in 2000. WEST WARWICK, R.I. The owners of The Station nightclub say their decision to finally speak publicly about the deadly fire there nearly . And that's when it starts to hit you all that you've lost. Like Barr, Linda Saran had also spent three weeks in a medically induced coma. The Station Nightclub Fire - University of Cincinnati pdf To summarize the reports, specifically about how people exited, the vast majority of people attempted to exit the way they came in. that door being up, there is no question that that increased the likelihood that many, many more would perish. Also there that night was Bates College student Phil Barr, who was home for winter break. It couldnt continue another 10, 15 years, it couldnt. "We wanted the full story to come out, not just some of it, and for people who want to come to their own conclusion on what happened that night," says Jeff Derderian. And I never expected it to take off as fast as it did. On February 20, 2003, in West Warwick, Rhode Island, the fourth deadliest nightclub fire in United States history occurred in The Station nightclub. And settled for $1 million. But Saturday night, as . Gina Russo of Cranston, R.I. is a survivor of the Station nightclub fire and president of The Station Fire Memorial Foundation. It took about five years to come to terms with that, she said. 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. And while they weren't charged in the criminal case, survivors and victims' families sued them in civil court for not warning the Derderians the foam they sent them was flammable. [21] The Station did not have a sprinkler system installed. It just so happens that we're evacuated due to the CZU complex fire but hey that's how. [79], The site of the fire was cleared, and a multitude of crosses were placed as memorials, left by loved ones of the deceased. Biechele pleaded guilty to 100 counts of misdemeanor manslaughter, and Michael and Jeff Derderian pleaded no contest. It would become one of the deadliest fires in a club in U.S. history. The biggest question was, why had the fire spread so quickly? We haven't played it since then and probably never will. In December 2003, nine months after the fire, Jeff and Michael Derderian were in court, each charged with 200 counts of involuntary manslaughter 100 for criminal negligence, and 100 for misdemeanor manslaughter. That was in like the 80s. They should have blamed more. They all later accepted plea deals. It was late on Feb. 20, 2003, when the cold winter night erupted in flames. [93] In the years following the fire, Great White split into two separate groups, one led by Russell and the other by Kendall. JEFF DERDERIAN [crying]: Many people didn't make it out and that is a horror that will haunt my family and I for the rest of our lives. And 18 years after the fire, the brothers say they want to set the record straight and reveal new information. He says he managed to escape through the front door before a stampede of people got stuck in the narrow hallway and blocked the exit. It looked like a ladder of those black jelly bracelets from the 80s hanging in rings around my wrists. The brothers sent a fax to the foam company specifically asking for sound foam. In 2003, 100 people died and over 200 were injured at a rock concert in West Warwick, Rhode Island. But instead, I chose to run like a common coward.. He got a tire iron from his car, smashed the glass, and started pulling people out. I went around back. The pyrotechnics ignited the walls on either side of the stage and within seconds flames spread along the foam that lined the walls and ceiling of the club intended to dampen sound. 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. So, before I knew it, this finger was contractured down in this position and the rest of them were all bent backwards because the skin had tightened up.". They all came so every single one of those hundred students held up a white rose and they represented one of the 100 [who died]. Warner lived next to The Station and had met the brothers. I could have missed my daughter's high school graduation, the birth of her children. Legal action against several parties, including Great White, were resolved with monetary settlements by 2008. As we hold those impacted by this tragedy close in our hearts, we also remember the remarkable and courageous actions of first responders, public safety officials, medical professionals, and Rhode Islanders who sprang into action to save lives on that day and who worked to comfort their communities in the days and weeks following.. Michael Derderian: That is correct. PATRICK LYNCH [press conference]: We have an investigation on going and we need help, we need answers and I'm trying to get them. Phil Barr: I asked my pulmonologist, you know, "when can I get back in the pool?" Michael spent 33 months in prison, while Jeff had to do 500 hours of community service. [4] No occupants were in the building during the 1972 fire, but the interior was significantly damaged. Christina Pimentel wasnt at the Station 15 years ago but she remembers the fire that killed 100 people because one of them was her uncle, Carlos Pimentel Sr. "We have 39 confirmed fatalities, and we are still in the process of searching the rubble. [25] Fire departments in Warwick, Coventry, and Cranston rendered mutual aid to the fire site. "Literally laid there and said, 'God please just take care of my family,' because I knew I was going to die,'" survivor Linda Saran recalls. In 2008, the band agreed to pay $1. In the days after the fire, victims' families and survivors faced a harsh new reality. You should be proud." (WJAR) WEST WARWICK . And I said my hands won't work. Nine months after the fire, the club's owners, brothers Jeff and Michael Derderian, along with Daniel Biechele, the band's tour manager, were each charged with 200 counts of involuntary. Jeff Derderian: That door was meant to block the noise from the neighbors. Jim Axelrod: Did the contract specify the use of pyrotechnics? He don't know. I was asked to work the merch table for the band, so I was getting 40 bucks and two T-shirts. these contracts are pretty specific. In 2017 a memorial was opened to honor the100 innocent lives that were tragically lost in The Station fire, including Tracy King, who died saving so many others. Jeff Derderian: They didn't even bring up the fax to him. [17][16], The concert was emceed by Michael Gonsalves, a disk jockey for Providence rock radio station WHJY who was also known as "Doctor Metal". But that night, leading the cameraman around was bouncer Tracy King, a dedicated husband and father of three young boys. [94] Kendall's version of Great White was to perform at the Mohegan Sun casino in Uncasville, Connecticut alongside Stryper and Steven Adler on March 25, 2023, but the venue indefinitely postponed the concert on March 2, citing its proximity to the twentieth anniversary of the fire.
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