The Station Nightclub Fire
February 20, 2003 - 100 people died on this night in one of the worst nightclub fires in U.S. history.
The club was called The Station and it was located in West Warwick, Rhode Island. Great White, the 80s rock band, was performing when their pyrotechnics ignited a blaze that engulfed the club in less than 6 minutes.
Panic ensued as clubgoers stampeded toward the front exit. There were 3 other exits, but instinctively the crowd went to the same door through which they had entered. The resulting crush of bodies quickly caused a logjam and many of the victims died in the narrow hallway near the front entrance. In addition to the 100 deaths, 230 people were injured.
The band's tour manager, Daniel Michael Biechele, pled guilty to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter. He would serve 2 years in jail before being paroled. In a separate trial the owners of the club, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, pled no contest and accepted a similar sentence to Biechele's.
Below is a video captured that tracks the very beginning of the fire and the terrifying 9 minutes that followed.
