Cassidy was questioned by Customs and Border Protection in 2016, three sources familiar with the probe . REELZ today announced the network's original documentary America's Deadliest Rock Concert: The Guest List premieres February 20th at 8pm ET/ 5pm PT presenting the deeply personal stories of lives forever altered by the tragic Station nightclub fire that left 100 people dead, more than 200 injured and devastated the tight-knit community of West Warwick, Rhode Island. But many, including the brothers, feel strongly Laroque should also have been charged. It made me realize, I might be only one person, but my story and my injuries were making people listen, she said. That evening she had a girl's night out with a friend while her young daughter was at a sleepover. 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 I'm like, "OK.". it became very, very hard to breathe. Jeff Derderian: None of the inspections and then follow-up inspections. ", "We are now at 65, and that may be higher ", Jeff Derderian: "Can you come in? Phil Barr: I loved it. Patrick Lynch: You're telling me it wasn't, and I don't know that it wasn't. But Saturday night, as . It was the fourth deadliest fire in a nightclub in US history. He was out there, and he just loved being in the center. I would see the burn survivors, whom Im lucky enough to call friends, Del Sesto said. This is a company that did little to educate their employees about the limits of polyurethane foam. The third started that day. At the time of The Station fire, older clubs in Rhode Island weren't required to install sprinklers. [60] As of 2013[update], Biechele lived in Florida with his wife and two children. [4] Another restaurant opened in the building in 1974. American Foam Corporation, who sold the insulation to The Station nightclub, agreed in 2008 to pay $6.3 million to settle lawsuits relating to the fire. So many ways this could have been avoided, Matthew Hoffman, an East Greenwich, R.I. resident, told WPRI. Michael Derderian: I don't know about that. She sees telling the story of the Station fire as a way of preventing others from going through the same thing. Bruce Cain also lost someone who he was prepared to spend the rest of his life with. At the opening of the park I had 100 students from my school come, and I had to explain it all so I gave them their learning experience, she said of last Mays dedication of the park on the site of the Station nightclub. It would become one of the deadliest fires in a club in U.S. history. MICHAEL DERDERIAN [at sentencing hearing]: There is so much pain and heartache that happened on our doorstep. And then, ever so slowly, he learned to walk again. A staggering 100 lives were lost. The TIAs required automatic fire sprinklers in all existing nightclubs and similar locations that accommodate more than 100 occupants, and all new locations in the same categories. And then the main exit that hallway where everyone came through. [21] The Station did not have a sprinkler system installed. The roof was caving in, walls were caving in, body after body in front of me. He spent 33 months in prison, while Jeff had to do 500 hours of community service. For the first February in 15 years, Lisa Del Sesto said, she hasnt had the nightmares. Phil Barr: I asked my pulmonologist, you know, "when can I get back in the pool?" It all started around 11 p.m. when the rock band Jack Russell's Great White took the stage and the group's tour manager, Daniel Biechele, set off four large fireworks called gerbs. And that's when I noticed the black on my arms. Del Sesto said her life is told in three chapters now. But with last springs dedication of the memorial on the old nightclub site, Del Sesto said she thinks she has found a way not to forget, but to live with the memories. How did you meet him? Linda Saran: They have said they were sorry. Jim Axelrod: Does this mean you feel a sense of responsibility? Kat Teurfs is the associate producer. "We have 39 confirmed fatalities, and we are still in the process of searching the rubble. [3] A fire had previously occurred at the building in 1972 while it was used as a restaurant called Julio's. He wrote: "This is a company that is well aware of the dangers of polyurethane foam. The second was the time from that night until the dedication of the memorial last spring. Gina Russo of Cranston, R.I. is a survivor of the Station nightclub fire and president of The Station Fire Memorial Foundation. Jody King: I'm so proud to say he's my brother. Hundreds of people ran to the only exit many of them knew the way they came in. [78] The event raised at least $25,000 in donations for the Station Family Fund, and was broadcast in March by VH1 and VH1 Classic. [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. For more information on your department or district joining the SAVE program click here or contact the California Fire Foundation at save@cpf.org or (916) 641-1707. To the families of those who died on that devastating day: Rhode Island will never forget your loved ones and we will always stand by you, McKee said in the statement. Michael Derderian: Correct. Phil Barr: You know just have a beer, see a concert. The fire was the fourth-deadliest at a nightclub in U.S. history, and the second-deadliest in New England, behind the 1942 Cocoanut Grove fire, which resulted in 492 deaths. Dont take life for granted and I miss her every day She was my world and now shes my angel.. Jeff Derderian: You know a day doesn't go by that we don't think about it in some way, shape or form. [97] Russell raised about $180 from the concert, but the Memorial Foundation refused the donation, a decision supported by Kendall. 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. People say they just feel peaceful, Russo told the Globe. It's not just about hitting the next goal but doing something really meaningful. And I fell down the stairs, out that door. The flanking gerbs became the principal cause of the fire. Jason Hahn. When King arrived, he saw the devastating scene. Joe Kinan was badly burned in the deadly Station Nightclub fire in Rhode Island that left 100 dead and 230 injured in February 2003 . And it was ugly. During a concert by the rock band Great White, a pyrotechnic display ignited flammable acoustic foam in the walls and ceilings surrounding the stage. It was criminal, he says. I don't know that I'll ever forgive myself for what happened that night, so I can't expect anybody else to. Scott James: I decided I would start asking some questions. [2][46] On December 9, 2003, the grand jury announced indictments against Station owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian and Great White road manager Daniel M. 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]. Michael Derderian: Jeffrey was responsible for all the marketing activities. They all later accepted plea deals. So, I actually got a really good sense of the layout of the venue.". [48], Following the tragedy, Governor Donald Carcieri declared a moratorium on pyrotechnic displays at venues that hold fewer than 300 people. [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. The blaze began when the band Jack Russell's Great White took the stage and their tour manager set off four large fireworks. The tragedy, she said, heightened her appreciation of the life she was allowed, for whatever reason, to continue. Inspection records showed that just three months before the fire, the Derderians had been cited by the local fire marshal for having a secondary, interior door by the stage that opened inward, which violated regulations. Jeff Derderian: Because in my mind I had nothing to hide. I try to say it in the lightest way possible, she said. Michael Derderian: No. But I made a choice. Tweet. Linda Saran: I think a lot of people miss out on the moments. It was really everything to me at that time. The Station Nightclub Fire: Who's Responsible? 2021, shooting at a San Jose rail station. Jim Axelrod: Did either of you know anything about running a nightclub? Marc Goldbaum is the development producer. Greatly., Things that bother people you sit there and you shake your head and you go, if this is the worst thing that happens to me today, this month, this year, this decade, I mean, at that point its one of those things. Linda Saran and Phil Barr, badly injured, were transported to a local hospital. Today marks the 20th anniversary of The Station nightclub fire in West Warwick, RI, which killed 100 people. And, according to the brothers, it was one of the first exits used when the fire started. But 15 years later, she said, its time for her to move out of its shadow. 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, Patrick Lynch: Jeffrey and Michael Derderian. [21] Thick smoke began to fill the station one minute after the ignition and the crowd began to escape the building. If they stood up and said, small business owners, we were inexperienced. Linda Saran: Most of the crowd thought it was part of the show and didn't move. We talk about fire safety a bit, I dont get too, too far into it.. / CBS News. He is now seven years sober from cocaine, although alcohol is a more pestering problem, he says. About 40 seconds after the song began, Great White stopped the show and all but one member of the band escaped through the stage door exit. Dan McKee stopped by the memorial on the 20th anniversary of the fire Monday. You walk on the property, and it doesnt feel tragic anymore. Scott James: It was a typical kind of roadside dive. That is the furthest exit away from the stage But it's a relatively straight line. [89] "I don't think I could ever sing that song again," said Russell. Jim Axelrod: Did you have enough time to form those complete thoughts? WEST WARWICK, R.I. (WJAR) Gina Russo, who survived The Station nightclub fire in West Warwick in 2003, spoke with NBC 10's Mario Hilario on the morning of the 20th anniversary of the. It had to be two minutes tops before the whole place was black smoke. that door being up, there is no question that that increased the likelihood that many, many more would perish. It looked like it was raining black fire. [12] The rest of the lineup included guitarist Ty Longley, who died in the fire, bass guitarist Dave Felice, and drummer Eric Powers. Many of the families believed that the punishment was just; others had hoped for a more severe sentence. You should be proud."