- 5 months ago
Disaster Transbian episode 6
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00:00Are you ready to tell him?
00:30Are you ready to tell him?
01:00Are you ready to tell him?
01:30Are you ready to tell him?
01:32Are you ready to tell him?
01:34Are you ready to tell him?
01:36Are you ready to tell him?
01:38Are you ready to tell him?
01:40Are you ready to tell him?
01:42Are you ready to tell him?
01:44Are you ready to tell him?
01:46Are you ready to tell him?
02:18Are you ready to tell him?
02:20Are you ready to tell him?
02:22Are you ready to tell him?
02:24Are you ready to tell him?
02:26Are you ready to tell him?
02:28Are you ready to tell him?
02:34Station Fire Memorial Park, a permanent memorial to the victims of the fire, was opened in
02:40May 2017 at the site where the station once stood.
02:46The station was a nightclub that was located on the corner of Cowessette Avenue in West
02:51Warwick, Rhode Island.
02:53The building that would become the station was built in 1946 and was originally used
02:58as a gym mill.
03:00Prior to being converted into a nightclub and concert venue, the station building had
03:05been used as a restaurant in a tavern.
03:07A fire had previously occurred at the building in 1972, while it was used as a restaurant
03:13called Julio's.
03:15No occupants were in the building during the 1972 fire, but the interior was significantly
03:20damaged.
03:22Another restaurant opened in the building in 1974.
03:25In 1985, it was converted to a pub, which closed sometime in the late 1980s, and a nightclub
03:31was opened in its place in 1991.
03:34The nightclub was purchased by brothers Michael and Jeffrey Derdarian in March 2000.
03:41In the months prior to the fire, the building had been inspected twice by West Warwick Fire
03:46Marshal Denise LaRocque.
03:49The club was cited for nine minor code violations during the first inspection in November 2002.
03:55But was not cited for the flammable polyurethane foam the venue used for soundproofing, which
04:01was against code.
04:02The follow-up inspection in December 2002 also did not cite the foam, and the inspector
04:09gave the building an all-okay rating on his inspection form.
04:12LaRocque later told the Rhode Island State Police that he had not spotted the polyurethane foam
04:18during the November 2002 inspection because he was upset after finding an illegal inward-swinging
04:24door that he had previously asked to be removed from the building.
04:28Prior to the fire, the station often hosted concerts by 1980s hard rock groups and tribute
04:35bands.
04:36Local bands that had played at the station prior to the fire had used pyrotechnics during
04:40their concerts without incident, including a KISS tribute band that had set off fireballs
04:45during their show in August 2002.
04:48Great White, the headlining band of the February 20th concert, had risen to fame as part of the
04:54glam metal scene of the late 1980s. They were best known for their 1989 cover of Ian Hunter's
05:01Once Bitten, Twice Shy, which reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100.
05:06At the time of their performance at the station, Great White had two of its original members in
05:10its lineup, lead singer Jack Russell and guitarist Mark Kendall.
05:15For the 2003 tour, the band was billed as Jack Russell's Great White. Kendall, who had
05:21co-founded the band with Russell in 1977, had rejoined Russell's version of the group in
05:262002.
05:27The rest of the lineup included guitarist Ty Longley, who died in the fire, bass guitarist,
05:33David Filich, and drummer Eric Powers.
05:36Great White's popularity had waned in the decade prior to the station fire, and they had been
05:42performing on a touring circuit of small clubs with capacities of up to 500 people.
05:47Although the band was officially known as Jack Russell's Great White at the time, and their
05:52tour was initially named after Russell's 2002 solo album For You, they were billed by the
05:58station as simply Great White. In February 2003, Great White was on an 18-date concert tour,
06:05and they had been using a pyrotechnic display during their performances that some club owners
06:10had denied them permission to use, citing safety concerns. Dominique Santana, the owner of the
06:17Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey, told reporters that Great White had used pyrotechnics during their
06:24February 14, 2003 performance at the venue without his permission, and their contract and writer did
06:30not mention pyrotechnics displays. In the aftermath of the fire, Great White and the owners of the station
06:37disputed whether the band were allowed to use the pyrotechnic display during their concert.
06:43Great White had two opening acts for the February 20th concert, Trip, a group from Vancouver,
06:48Washington, and Fathead, a local Rhode Island band. All the members of Trip escaped the station without
06:55injury, but two members of Fathead, cousins Keith and Steven Mancini, died in the fire. The concert was
07:02emceed by Michael Gonsalves, a disc jockey for Providence rock radio station, WHJY, who is also
07:09known as Dr. Metal. Gonsalves was the host of the WHJY program, The Metal Zone, at the time the longest
07:18running heavy metal radio program in the United States. Great White started their performance at 1107
07:28p.m. on February 20th. A total of 462 people were in attendance, even though the club's maximum
07:36license capacity was cited as 404. The fire started shortly after Great White began performing their
07:43opening number, Desert Moon. During their performance, Daniel Bichelle ignited the flammable acoustic foam
07:50on both sides and the top center of the drummer's alcove at the back of the stage. Cylindrical devices that
07:56produce a controlled spray of sparks. Bichelle used four gerbs that were set to spray sparks 15 feet
08:04for 15 seconds. Two gerbs were at 45 degree angles, with the middle two pointing straight up. The flanking
08:12gerbs became the principal cause of the fire. Sparks from the gerbs ignited the insulation foam and flames
08:19were visible on the wall above the stage within nine seconds of their ignition. The flames were initially
08:24thought to be part of the act. Only as the fire reached the ceiling and smoke began to bank down
08:30did people realize it was uncontrolled. 20 seconds after the pyrotechnics ended,
08:36the band stopped playing and lead singer Jack Russell calmly remarked into the microphone,
08:41Wow, that's not good. Within 40 seconds of the ignition, Great White had stopped playing
08:46and left the stage and the venue's fire alarm began to sound, but it was not connected to the local fire department.
09:00and for the clock, I thought you were doing the same, but it was not connected to the most of the time when I was connected.
09:08I was so busy, I thought I could be sitting here at the desk and I was so busy and I was like,
09:14you're going to be a plan for my attention. We're going to be a plan for the first day and I was going to be a plan.
09:20The line has the pen, but I feel that you're going to be a plan for the every day.
09:24It has the confidence and I'm going to be a plan for the crew and the rest of the line.
09:28Where's my boy?
09:40Where's my boy?
09:58Oh, my God.
10:28The station did not have a sprinkler system installed.
10:40Thick smoke began to fill the station one minute after the ignition, and the crowd began to escape the building.
10:46The fire spread throughout the building and was completely engulfed within six minutes of the pyrotechnic ignition.
10:52By this time, the nightclub's fire alarm had activated, and although there were four possible exits, most people headed for the front door through which they had entered.
11:03The ensuing crowd crush in the narrow hallway led to that exit being blocked completely and resulted in numerous deaths and injuries among the patrons and staff.
11:13The sound of the fire alarm was shot.
11:20Oh my God, I'm beating!
11:22Oh my God!
11:24Oh my God!
11:26Oh my God!
11:30Oh my God!
11:32Oh my God!
11:35Oh my God!
11:36The first West Warwick fire engine arrived at the scene at 11.13 p.m., followed by three
12:04other trucks shortly thereafter. Hundreds of firefighters responded to the fire, including
12:09every available West Warwick firefighter. Fire departments in Warwick, Coventry, and Cranston
12:15rendered mutual aid to the fire site. The Cowessette Inn restaurant across the street
12:21from the station acted as an ad hoc burn triage and command center for first responders.
12:28Everybody inside!
12:34The Cowessette Inn
13:04Is he a medic?
13:13He's a medic?
13:16He's a medic!
13:18He's a medic!
13:30Jimmy, just come here!
13:34No!
13:35No!
13:36No!
13:37All right, hurt it!
13:38No!
13:39Get out!
13:40Get out!
13:41Get out!
13:42Get out!
13:43Get out!
13:44Get out!
13:45Get out!
13:46Let's go!
13:51Get out!
13:52Get out!
13:53Get out!
13:54Get out!
13:55Get out!
14:00Oh my God, I'm scared!
14:04There are multiple, multiple deaths in this thing, you've got to get people down here.
14:18Santa!
14:20No!
14:34There are people that are alive in the sky, running through your feet, you're going to smash the top.
14:46You're already ready.
14:52Yeah, come on, we've got people in here.
14:56We've got people in here, we've got people in here, they'reping!
15:00Alright!
15:01Go Lies!
15:29Go Lies!
15:31The building is engulfed in plain right there.
15:35And there's like, there's got to be 50 people still left inside that big gate.
15:40This is not good.
15:41I'm out of there. I'm out of the parking lot.
15:49I don't know, I'm just here already.
15:51I mean, what happened happened.
15:54We all get stopped at the door.
15:57We all get stopped right now.
15:58Everybody out of the leaves.
16:00Everybody's like, what's going on?
16:01What's going on?
16:02People saw it.
16:02It's got to move it away.
16:06There's so many people injured here.
16:07There's so many people injured.
16:09And I'm sure it's at least a place of death.
16:12It's unbelievable what's going on.
16:15I got every inch of it.
16:16Every speed of it.
16:18This is worse.
16:20You're going to get that fire.
16:21You're going to find this.
16:24Right.
16:25This is worse.
16:27This is terrible.
16:27This is worse.
16:57I called them! I called them!
17:18You have to listen to me.
17:48A 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.
17:58Patients were transported to Kent Hospital, which was filled to maximum capacity due to the fire.
18:04By 1.30 a.m. on February 21st, all patients had been transported and the street had been cleared.
18:11Of the 462 people in the building for the concert, 100 were killed, 230 were injured, and 132 escaped uninjured.
18:22The initial death toll was 96 people.
18:25Four more individuals died in the hospital in the weeks following, bringing the toll to 100.
18:31Among those who died in the fire were great white guitarist Ty Longley and the show's MC, WHJY DJ, Mike the Dr. Gonsalves.
18:41Longley reportedly died after returning to the building to retrieve his guitar.
18:46Four employees of this station were killed in the fire.
18:50In April 2003, the Derdarians were fined $1.7 million for failing to carry workers' compensation insurance for their employees.
19:00The fine was not resolved until 2013, ten years after the fire, when it was upheld by a judge.
19:06One survivor claimed that a bouncer blocked a side door as attendees attempted to escape the building, stating the door was only to be used by the band.
19:15Providence Phoenix columnist Ian Donis wrote of the effect that the fire had on the close-knit Rhode Island community.
19:22The loss of so much life would represent a tragedy anywhere, but it struck especially hard in Rhode Island, the nation's smallest state, where no place is more than an hour away by car.
19:34Many of the survivors of the fire developed a post-traumatic stress disorder after the event.
19:40The fire, from its inception, was caught on videotape by cameraman Brian Butler for WPRI-TV of Providence, and the beginning of that tape was released to national news stations.
19:53Butler was there for a planned piece on nightclub safety by Jeffrey A. Derdarian, a WPRI news reporter who is also a part owner of the station.
20:03The report had been inspired by the E-2 nightclub stampede in Chicago that killed 21 people three days earlier.
20:11Derdarian had begun working for WPRI on February 17th, three days before the fire.
20:17WPRI-TV and Derdarian were criticized for the conflict of interest in having a reporter do a report concerning his own property.
20:26Derdarian resigned from WPRI on June 30th.
20:30At the scene of the fire, Butler gave this account of the tragedy.
20:33It was that fast. As soon as the pyrotechnics stopped, the flame had started on the egg crate backing behind the stage, and it just went up the ceiling.
20:42And people stood and watched it. Some people backed off.
20:45When I turned around, some people were already trying to leave, and others were just sitting there going,
20:50Yeah, that's great. And I remember that statement because I was like,
20:54This is not great. This is the time to leave.
20:57At first there was no panic. Everybody just kind of turned. Most people still just stood there.
21:02In the other rooms, the smoke hadn't gotten to them. The flame wasn't that bad. They didn't think anything of it.
21:08Well, I guess once we all started to turn toward the door, and we got bottlenecked into the front door, people just kept pushing, and eventually everyone popped out of the door, including myself.
21:18That's when I turned back. I went around back. There was no one coming out of the back door. I kicked out a side window to try to get people out of there.
21:26One guy did crawl out. I went back around the front again, and that's when you saw people stacked on top of each other trying to get out of the front door.
21:34And by then, the black smoke was pouring out over their heads. I noticed when the pyro stopped, the flame had kept going on both sides.
21:42And then on one side, I noticed it came over the top, and that's when I said, I have to leave.
21:47And I turned around, and I said, Get out. Get out. Get to the door. Get to the door. People just stood there.
21:53There was a table in the way at the door, and I pulled that out just to get it out of the way so people could get out easier.
21:59And I never expected it to take off as fast as it did. It just, it was so fast. It had to be two minutes tops before the whole place was black smoke.
22:12A National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, investigation of the fire under the authority of the National Construction Safety Team Act,
22:21using a computer simulation with FDS and a mock-up of the stage area and dance floor, concluded that a fire sprinkler system would have contained the fire long enough to give everyone time to exit safely.
22:34The station, which was built in 1946, was exempt from a sprinkler requirement in the state fire code through a grandfather clause,
22:44which stated that buildings constructed before 1976 were not required to have a sprinkler system.
22:50I'm sorry, that really pisses me off. Fuck the grandfather clause.
22:53The NIST report was released on March 3, 2005, and was made available in two parts on June 30, 2005.
23:01An investigation of the fire by a Rhode Island state grand jury was started by then Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch on February 26, 2003.
23:12On December 9, 2003, the grand jury announced indictments against station owners Jeffrey and Michael Dardarian and great white road manager Daniel M. Bischel.
23:22The three were each charged with 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter with criminal negligence and 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter in violation of a misdemeanor.
23:33La Roque was not charged by the grand jury as Lynch had cited a state law that prevented charges against fire marshals without proof of bad faith.
23:42The grand jury also did not return charges against Russell.
23:46Lynch told 48 Hours that his investigation found that the fire spread quickly due to the foam the Dardarians had installed in the station's walls and ceilings as a response to noise complaints.
23:58The lack of usable exits was also a factor, as was the inward door that La Roque had found and asked to be removed.
24:05Jeffrey Dardarian said the door was also installed due to noise and they had removed it as asked, but sometimes reinstalled it if the venue was going to be loud that night and it was used by the band to escape the building during the fire.
24:19Michael Dardarian told 48 Hours that it was undisputable that the building's use of flammable packing foam instead of flame retarded sound foam was the cause of the fire spread.
24:30But the brothers claimed that they had ordered sound foam and had received the packing foam instead.
24:37The foam was sold to the Dardarians by American Foam.
24:42In 2005, the Rhode Island Attorney General Office received a fax from Barry Warner, a former employee of American Foam, who lived nearby the station, who claimed the company had known about the dangers of polyurethane foam but did not warn their employees about it.
24:59Although Warner was called to testify to a grand jury, he was not asked about the facts.
25:04American Foam refuted the claims in Warner's facts.
25:08In 2008, American Foam agreed to pay $6.3 million to the families of the victims of the fire.
25:15Victims' families have also cited overcrowding in the venue as a cause for the casualties during the fire.
25:21La Roque had set various capacities for the station in the years prior to the fire, based on whether pool tables and other items could be moved.
25:30The capacity for the station was either 258 or 404, depending on how the building was being used.
25:38The final tally by the Providence Journal of people inside the station during the fire totaled 462.
25:48The first criminal trial was against Great White's tour manager, Daniel Michael Bichelle, 26, from Orlando, Florida.
25:57This trial was scheduled to start May 1, 2006, but Bichelle, against his lawyer's advice, pleaded guilty to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter on February 7, 2006.
26:09And what he said was an effort to bring peace.
26:12I want this to be over with.
26:14On May 10, 2006, State Prosecutor Randall White asked that Bichelle be sentenced to 10 years in prison, the maximum allowed under the plea bargain, citing the massive loss of life in the fire and the need to send a message.
26:30Speaking to the public for the first time since the fire, Bichelle stated,
26:35For three years, I've wanted to be able to speak to the people that were affected by this tragedy.
26:40But I know that there's nothing I can say or do that will undo what happened that night.
26:45Since the fire, I have wanted to tell the victims and their families how truly sorry I am for what happened that night and the part that I had in it.
26:54I never wanted anyone to be hurt in any way. I never imagined that anyone ever would be.
26:59I know how this tragedy has devastated me, but I can only begin to understand what the people who lost loved ones have endured.
27:06I don't know that I'll ever forgive myself for what happened that night, so I can't expect anybody else to.
27:12I can only pray that they understand that I would do anything to undo what happened that night and give them back their loved ones.
27:19I'm so sorry for what I've done. I don't want to cause anyone any more pain.
27:24I will never forget that night. I will never forget the people that were hurt by it. I am so sorry.
27:30Superior Court Judge Francis J. Derrigan Jr. sentenced Bichelle to 15 years in prison with four to serve and 11 years suspended plus three years probation for his role in the fire.
27:43Derrigan remarked, the greatest sentence that can be imposed on you has been imposed on you by yourself.
27:51Bichelle was released in March 2008.
27:54The sentence drew mixed reactions in the courtroom.
27:57Many of the families believed that the punishment was just. Others had hoped for a more severe sentence.
28:03On September 4th, 2007, some families of the fire's victims expressed their support for Bichelle's parole.
28:10Leland Hoysington, whose 28-year-old daughter, Abby, was killed in the fire, told reporters,
28:16I think they should not even bother with a hearing. Just let Bichelle out. I just don't find him as guilty of anything.
28:22It's very difficult to express what I experienced at the club that evening, trying to get people out safely.
28:29Please, no, I tried as hard as I could.
28:32The state parole board received approximately 20 letters, the majority of which expressed their sympathy and support for Bichelle,
28:39some going as far to describe him as a scapegoat with limited responsibility.
28:44Parole board chairwoman Lisa Hawley told journalists of her surprise at the forgiving attitude of the families, saying,
28:50I think the most overwhelming part of it for me was the depth of forgiveness of many of these families that have sustained such a loss.
28:57Dave Kane and Joanne O'Neal, parents of the youngest victim, Nicholas O'Neal, released their letter to the board to reporters.
29:06In the period following this tragedy, it was Mr. Bichelle alone who stood up and admitted responsibility for his part in this horrible event.
29:14He apologized to the families of the victims and made no attempt to mitigate his guilt, the letter said.
29:20Others pointed out that Bichelle had sent handwritten letters to the families of each of the 100 victims and that he had a work release position in a local charity.
29:29On September 19, 2007, the Rhode Island Parole Board announced that Bichelle would be released in March 2008.
29:37Bichelle was released from prison on March 19, 2008.
29:41Bichelle's parole and probation expired in March 2011.
29:45As of 2013, Bichelle lived in Florida with his wife and two children.
29:50Following Bichelle's trial, the station's owners, Michael and Jeffrey Derderian, were scheduled to receive separate trials.
29:58However, on September 21, 2006, Judge Derrigan announced that the brothers had changed their pleas from not guilty to no contest, thereby avoiding a trial.
30:09Michael Derderian received 15 years in prison, with four to serve and 11 years suspended, plus three years probation, the same sentence as Bichelle.
30:18Jeffrey Derderian received 500 hours of community service.
30:22In a letter to the victims' families, Judge Derrigan wrote that he accepted the deal because he wanted to avoid public exposition of the tragic, explicit and horrific events experienced by the victims of this fire, both living and dead.
30:36He added that the difference in the brothers' sentences reflected their respective involvement with the purchase and installation of the flammable foam.
30:44Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch objected strenuously to the plea bargain, saying that both brothers should have received jail time and that Michael Derderian should have received more time than Bichelle.
30:57In January 2008, the Parole Board decided to grant Michael Derderian an early release.
31:03He was scheduled to be released from prison in September 2009, but was granted his release in June 2009 for good behavior.
31:10Thousands 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.
31:22Another memorial was later that night at the West Warwick Civic Center.
31:27A benefit memorial concert was held in February 2008 at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence and featured performances by Tesla, Twists' sister, Winger, Gretchen Wilson, and John Rich.
31:39The event raised at least $25,000 in donations for the Station Family Fund and was broadcast in March by VH1 and VH1 Classic.
31:51The site of the fire was cleared and a multitude of crosses were placed as memorials left by loved ones of the deceased.
31:58In June 2003, the Station Fire Memorial Foundation was formed with the purpose of purchasing the property to build and maintain a memorial.
32:07In September 2012, the owner of the land, Ray Villanova, donated the site to SFMF.
32:13By April 2016, $1.65 million of the $2 million fundraising goal had been achieved and construction of the Station Fire Memorial Park had commenced.
32:24The memorial dedication ceremony took place on May 21, 2017.
32:29It's surreal. It seems senseless that something like this could happen.
32:45So many ways this could have been avoided.
32:48But it's nice to see that people are paying their respects.
32:52I come here and visit quite often and I've seen other people here throughout the year, not just today.
32:58So it's nice to see that everyone that perished is remembered.
33:02It's a beautiful memorial. I didn't expect what I saw.
33:05The people that are responsible for this and the upkeep of it, my hat goes off to them.
33:10They do a wonderful job.
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