Hundreds of people filled the parking lot and streets; half were injured, many seriously. . For those of you who may not be familiar with this tragic event, I am sharing some resources that I previously posted here on iDigHardware, along with some additional information. Rescue 1 cleared its run and responded at 2314. A Providence Journal article stated when one first responder approached three co-workers at the scene, he said they wore the "thousand-yard stare" of horror. The Station nightclub fire footage. Falling patrons jammed the main exit, trapping the people behind them inside. Im a far better person than I was, she says. |. February 20 - The Station nightclub fire in West Warwick, Rhode Island killed 100 and injured 230. Patrons self-evacuated and were assisted out by police and surviving patrons prior to Engine 4's arrival. Engine 3 was blocked by traffic and Engine 2 laid dual 300-foot supply lines from a hydrant on Cowesett Road, pulling in close to Engine 4. A band that was performing that night used pyrotechnics that ignited polyurethane foam insulation lining the walls and ceiling of the stage platform. Photo by Steve Klamkin WPRO News. The north-facing front door (the main entrance) of the nightclub was about 140 ft from Cowesett Avenue. He fell to the tile on his side and the people all around him burned. Once again, out of a terrible tragedy, many questions were raised on the efficacy of fire-combating techniques within buildings and the need for fire sprinklers and better-marked egress. Three minutes later, Great White abandoned its set and lead singer Jack Russell warned the crowd, This aint good. The band dashed off stage just as the clubs fire alarm started blasting. This author could not access the 2003 plan components nor verify its effectiveness. The DHS report stated the medical examiner's office was overtaxed. (Manager Obi Steinman was brought in after the fire to help rebuild the bands reputation.) The congregating injured created another triage area by default. Consequently, there was essentially no debate on the impact of reduced sprinkler thresholds on restaurants during the code development process, and even fast-food restaurants with large seating areas or an indoor playscape require sprinklers because of this change. The fire, which broke out on Feb. 20, 2003, was caused by pyrotechnics set off by the tour manager of the band Great White. Firefighters remove their headgear and bow in prayer as a Chaplain blesses a deceased person in a body bag on a stretcher. If you're already an ICC member Sign In Now. The NIST report also cites numerous code infractions that contributed to the fire and the subsequent loss of life. The scene firefighters faced is addressed. West Warwick's fire chief (Chief 1) called enroute at 2322, directing FA to implement the state's Mass-Casualty Incident (MCI) Plan through the Metro Control Center (Cranston's FA). Accepting the 2007 figure of 462 occupants and knowing 96 bodies were recovered, it is probable more than 100 people were rescued by firefighters before the building became completely untenable. Of the fatalities, 95 were due to the inability of the occupants to evacuate before being overcome by the untenable conditions along the egress path. Please change your password. Even with their new frontman, he says, hes stoked that Great White is still around. Another stated that only four hospitalized victims expired, which was attributable to the airway-management skills of the EMTs and emergency physicians. At 2337, command radioed triage that people were still being pulled out from side A. Inside, an Engine 2 member with a Warwick EMS officer coordinated triaging victims separating and tagging them "green" and "yellow" for treatment. For many, the misunderstanding proved fatal. As the fire reached the ceiling and smoke began to billow, people began to realize the nightclub was on fire. At 2323, Rescue 1 notified FA that 10 victims were being transported, with five in critical condition; four rescues were on scene; at least 10 more were needed and they had 50 to 75 injured. As operations slowed, a sweep ordered of the fireground and surrounding areas found additional injured victims. Kendall, who fought addictions before the fire, could have easily fallen off the wagon afterward. Eagan admits she isnt a very spiritual person, but after she walked out of the Station catastrophe, that Bible verse became a mantra. By 2330, three handlines and master streams from Engines 2 and 4 were in service on side A. there is one story of Mike Vargas who did indeed survive the burning pile up in the front doorway. The fire started at the West Warwick club when a manager for the band Great White set off pyrotechnics for the band's show . Multiple fireground and INTERCITY radio transmissions requesting all available rescues and all available manpower may have resulted in assets self-deploying. After the tour bus was removed, the Warwick tower ladder backed into the A-side parking lot adjacent to the West Warwick engines. One video shows a burning patron exiting a barroom window as firefighters approached. WFD Engine 9 assisted moving scores of victims in the streets. This book is actually an autobiography of one of the victims of Rhode Island's Station Nightclub fire. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has published information about nightclub tragedies on their website, including a video about nightclub fire safety, and a safety tip sheet on places of public assembly. The band began a benefit tour for victims and survivors that summer, and they would continue to perform benefits for the next two years. The fire spread quickly along the ceiling area over the dance floor. An exit near the stage was quickly eliminated as the fire spread around the door, preventing escape. If the fire wasnt enough to overcome, Great White is now forging ahead with a new singer, with the previous one now fronting an offshoot, Great White featuring Jack Russell. When he did, Lardie saw footage of the blaze and heard that a guitarist from the band was missing. creating a bottleneck at the front door. . While trying to escape he fell and was buried under a 5ft tall pile of bodies. Backstage, Kendall drinks a Diet Pepsi and smokes an e-cigarette as he sits on a couch, his eyes hidden behind shades. Due to the large number of deceased, teams made multiple recoveries. Nine seconds later, flames were out all front windows. As months and years passed, lawsuits and criminal charges were filed against the Stations owners and Great Whites tour manager. There were spaces that I would not enter, knowing what I know about nightclub tragedies. >> IM SO GRATEFUL TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GIVE BACK TO THE 100, TO BE A PART OF GIVING BACK TO THE 100 AND ALSO SURVIVING IT. His cousin, Shawn Sweet, died in the disaster. The Rhode Island State Police (RISP) report confirmed that when Engine 4 arrived, multiple victims were trapped on top of one another in the front door. OPERA. James Gahan is photographed, May 13, 2006, at his home in Falmouth, Mass., with a portrait of his son, Jimmy, who died in the Station Nightclub fire in 2003 in West Warwick, R.I. Gahan was one of those who made a statement in court this week when Dan Biechele was sentenced. The flames were at first thought to be part of the act; only as the fire reached the ceiling and smoke began to billow did people realize the nightclub was on fire. Egress from the nightclub, which was not equipped with sprinklers, was hampered by crowding at the main entrance to the building. It was one of the deadliest nightclub fires in the nation's history, and an event that has had lasting consequences for hundreds of families. For many Eighties acts, the fog machine is a time-honored stage prop. 4. Within two minutes of Chief 1's arrival, Engine 1 and Ladder 1 reported the front entryway clogged with about 20 victims. One never made it out. Four engines and one tower ladder operating three deck guns, one ladder pipe and numerous 1-inch handlines were used in suppression operations. By the time it was extinguished, the Station Nightclub Fire had earned an unwanted place as one of the deadliest fires in U.S. history the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in the U.S. and the second-deadliest in New England surpassed by the 1942 Cocoanut Grove fire that resulted in 492 deaths. ' she says. The emotional impact on the responding firefighters continues. Police are investigating after two U.S. Post Office collection boxes in Alfred were set on fire Sunday. Collect, curate and comment on your files. Battalion 1, arriving at 2314, established Command on Cowesett Road opposite the A/D corner, and reported the building was well involved and that multiple rescues would be needed. Nothing was getting me consistent with feeing better. Two distinct triage areas emerged, one with Hopkins Hill Rescue 6 at the A/D corner and one at the CIR opposite the A/B corner. >> ITS ALL I CAN DO NOW, JUST COME TO THE PLACE WHERE HE LAST WAS. As Ive said before (and will likely say many more times)to honor the lives lost in these tragedies, we must learn from them. The main entrance on the north side, with double doors, led to a . The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published a 2-volume report on the fire, which is available on their website. Some agencies radioed both West Warwick and Metro Control on the INTERCITY to offer assistance. >> I COME DOWN EVERY YEAR AND JUST KIND OF PLAY THE PIPES. The cramped foyer was reportedly designed to prevent people from entering the club without a ticket, but it proved disastrous when the large, panicked crowd clogged it in a desperate attempt to escape the blaze. Precious seconds ticked by as most of the audience remained in place, thinking their actions were part of the show. December 1 - La Coajira nightclub fire in Caracas, Venezuela, killed 47. Turn on push notifications and don't miss anything! A hug its insane how much that does., Eagan says Kendall is in touch with a core group of about 15 survivors. A disaster., Minutes before opening act Slaughter begins its set, Great White drummer Audie Desbrow, who joined the band in 1986, is signing Delgados records backstage. A diagram released by the RISAG in 2004 with approximate locations of bodies showed 68 at or near side A. Thirty-one were inside the hallway and vestibule, nine at the dance-floor entrance to the vestibule, three in the main bar and 25 in the sunroom adjacent to the common vestibule and hallway wall and windows. We have an absolute bond, he says. Two minutes after the Desert Moon kickoff, the camera catches a haunting visual patrons stuck in a doorway, piled like wood, as black smoke billows over their heads. Tweet. 2003. But the group wouldnt escape their new, dark association. Webmaster | Contact Us | Our Other Offices, Created June 3, 2011, Updated April 5, 2022, Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), About the Disaster & Failure Studies Program, Champlain Towers South Collapse NCST Investigation, World Trade Center Investigation Materials. The non-profit recently acquired the land, which is currently filled with 100 crosses made from burned Station wood. Within 90 minutes, about 200 injured were triaged and transported, mostly by fire department rescues and commercial ambulances; the balance in commercial and fire department buses and private vehicles. Although there were four possible exits, most attendees headed for the front door through which they had entered. Jeffrey Derderian received a 10-year suspended sentence, three years probation, and 500 hours of community service. "I come down every year and play the (bagpipes)," he said. When one Warwick police sergeant, a trained fire investigator, approached the fire building, he stated it was fully involved; heavy black smoke and flames were coming from various points; screams could be heard from people trapped inside, and firefighters were pulling people from the fire and making suppression efforts. Scanning side A at 11:13:12 P.M., the WPRI video recorded flames visible outside atrium windows reflected in the tour bus windows. Id just met them.. There were people right next to the door that didnt get out, she tells Rolling Stone. Another 230 were injured. Three other exits were open and marked with lit signs in other parts of the club, but most people never realized they were there. Chief 1 assigned two safety officers, one each from Warwick and West Warwick. Two of the five friends she arrived with suffered serious burns. The Station nightclub fire in West Warwick in 2003 was the fourth-worst such fire in the nation's history. Fire survivor Jesse Botelho, 30, of Pawtucket, R.I. speaks to reporters near the remains of The Station nightclub. Starting with the International Conference of Building Officials as the managing editor of its, Explore all the benefits that ICC Membership has to offer, Buildings, Construction, Architecture/Design, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Pools/Spas, Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation, Resiliency, Report of the Technical Investigation of The Station Nightclub Fire, Volume 1, Report of the Technical Investigation of The Station Nightclub Fire: Appendices. Via the INTERCITY, West Warwick requested three rescues from Cranston FA, which dispatched Rescues 2, 3 and 4 at 2321. Keep me up to date! The DHS report stated a cascading telephone call-back system was used. An in-depth look at the initial fire and EMS response and recovery operations for the Station Night Club fire in West Warwick, RI. The fire, which broke out on February 20. Those compiling reports during civil and criminal litigation had limited access to evidence and interviews. Great White Play North Dakota Gig With No Social Distancing, Masks The medical examiner's 2003 grand jury testimony, released in 2007, revealed autopsy results for 98 victims. It supplied a feeder liner to Engine 4 and operated its deck gun on the front entrance. Smoke was visible in the exit doorways in a little more than one minute, and flames were observed breaking through a portion of the roof in less than five minutes. Joe Barber, 30, of West Warwick, R.I. reacts with his bandaged hand in Warwick, R.I. Friday, Feb. 21, 2003 as he speaks about events during the deadly fire at The Station nightclub. Eventually, he says, Station survivors helped him the most. THE FIRE 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. In the confusion, others fled blindly, finding themselves trapped in places like bathrooms with no means of escape. Grow your brand authentically by sharing brand content with the internets creators. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. On Feb. 27, 2003 a NIST team was directed to investigate the fire. I just walked out. A survivor claimed that she and her fianc had tried to escape through one exit, but were stopped by a bouncer stating that that door was "for the band only.". Fire quickly ravaged the nightclubs wooden single-story structure; it only took five minutes for the unprotected building to be engulfed in flames. It recommended specific improvements to building standards, codes and practices to improve the structural fire safety of buildings and evacuation procedures. 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