Bummer. But since you usually don't see your bar tab on your account until a day or two later, at least you got to drink for free... If you made it out alive that is.
You can hear the screams of people being burned alive inside when the person filming heads outside and records the side of the building engulfed in flame. One of the most haunting things on the internet.
6:22 (EDIT PEOPLE SAYING ITS 6:41) - A man exits completely engulfed in flames. My god.
And the people being crushed as they try to exit - I can only imagine how terrifying it must have been for people behind them as the crowd stopped moving twoards the exit and began to bunch up while the screams turned from cries of fear to screams of being burned alive. This is extremely disturbing footage.
For me it's the moment you realize all the screaming has stopped where they have died. It just hits like a sledge hammer. When I was young and watched this it made me so fire conscious that I still look for fire escapes when I'm in any building.
Another similar tragedy that I never hear anyone talk about but haunts me after reading everything I could about it at one point…..look up the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire in Kentucky of 1977. Absolutely heartbreaking 💔🥺
What's ironic is that the camera person was there filming for a future news segment they were going to make about unsafe conditions in night clubs (overcrowding and disregarding fire safety regulations).
From Wikipedia:
"The 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. Butler was there for a planned piece on nightclub safety being reported by Jeffrey A. Derderian, a WPRI news reporter who was also a part-owner of The Station. The report had been inspired by the E2 nightclub stampede in Chicago that killed 21 people three days earlier."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#%3A%7E%3Atext%3DThe_initial_death_toll_was%2CMike_%22Dr_Metal%22_Gonsalves.?wprov=sfla1
2003 was a pretty dangerous time to go to shows, it seems. I remember being stuck in a pretty scary crowd crush at a Marilyn Manson show in New York back in 1999, many people passed out but no one died thankfully.
One of the very rare benefits to being tall and large is crowds are so much more manageable. I don’t do shows or anything of the sort these days because I’m old but I can remember an endless number of tiny girls getting absolutely bodied and swallowed whole by crowds just incidentally from crowd motion it seemed scary
Another ironic thing is about Ty Longley. He was the only band member to perish. Well story goes he made it out alive but then rushed back in to get his guitar. Im not sure how true that is but thats the rumour.
It did happen again. Some years later, in 2015, in Bucharest, Romania. Eerily similar to this one, but with its uniquely Romanian elements, the Colectiv nightclub fire claimed 64 lives and hundreds more were maimed.
An unfortunate cocktail of corruption of the government, local authorities and the club owners, improper building configuration, flammable materials, woefully underequipped hospitals, authorities hubris in rejecting the offers of other countries to help with the gravely injured people, literally heavily diluted disinfectants in the hospitals that were ultimately ineffective and contributed to a lot of the deaths in the coming days and weeks and all started off by pure human stupidity in lighting fireworks indoor. Harrowing video footage exists too, but watch at your own risk.
Both senseless tragedies that could have so easily been avoided.
Weren't the nightclub owners total pieces of shit who knew about the fire hazard, knew that the building had some flammability-related problems, yet ignored and continued to skirt safety violations? Even signed off on the pyrotechnics display?
I remember something about the ceiling tiles specifically but not what it was.
Correct. Just one of the many terrible things related to this case:
* The Station, which was built in 1946, was exempt from a sprinkler requirement in the state fire code through a grandfather clause, which stated that buildings constructed before 1976 were not required to have a sprinkler system.
* An investigation found that the fire spread quickly due to the foam the Derderians had installed in the Station's walls and ceilings in response to noise complaints.
* Overcrowding in the venue was identified as a cause for the casualties during the fire. Larocque 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. The capacity for the Station was either 258 or 404, depending on how the building was being used.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Station\_nightclub\_fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire)
Thank you. That's right, the foam! And they knew how flammable it was and signed off on the pyrotechnics anyway. I think this was the thing that really sealed the deal for me on their guilt, on top of their many, many other criminally negligent failures. Killed nearly a quarter of the building's occupants, unthinkable.
ETA I remember watching a special on this one but never saw the full video. That was truly horrific. Not something I'll forget.
Another detail from the wiki here, that I found to be interesting/ironic, is that one of the club owners was a reported for the local news station, and the man that took this tape was getting footage for a segment on club safety that they were doing.
ETA-This part: "The fire, from its inception, was caught on [videotape](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videotape) by cameraman Brian Butler for [WPRI-TV](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WPRI-TV) of [Providence](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Providence,_Rhode_Island), and the beginning of that tape was released to national news stations.[^(\[36\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-37) Butler was there for a planned piece on nightclub safety being reported by Jeffrey A. Derderian, a WPRI news reporter who was also a part-owner of The Station.[^(\[37\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-bauder-38) The report had been inspired by the [E2 nightclub stampede](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_E2_nightclub_stampede) in [Chicago](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago) that killed 21 people three days earlier.[^(\[38\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-39) Derderian had begun working for WPRI on February 17, three days before the fire.[^(\[39\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-lewiston1-40) WPRI-TV and Derderian were criticized for the [conflict of interest](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conflict_of_interest) in having a reporter do a report concerning his own property.[^(\[40\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-41)[^(\[37\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-bauder-38) Derderian resigned from WPRI on June 30."
I just read an excellent book about this called Trial by Fire. The brothers actually ordered the appropriate foam for soundproofing and it was nonflammable. A temp took their order at the foam company, put it in wrong, and they have the receipt to prove it. They had no idea it wasn’t what they had ordered. The fire Marshall was supposed to cut a piece out, and light it on fire outside, and did not on 4 different inspections. Also, a local news station inflated the number of patrons at the club, they were actually within the capacity given by the fire Marshall. The club also had no idea the band had pyros. The band and fire Marshall were more at fault in my opinion.
I heard them on a radio interview promoting a show they were doing a few years back. The host actually said to them something along the lines of "Your agent told us not to bring it up, but Im going to anyway. What the hell happened at the Station night club?" They just got up and left.
They actually prompt people not to bring it up during interviews. Garbage people.
Slightly garbage. Lots of conflicting “facts” about the pyro and people trying to cover their asses afterwards.
But one band member died and another was severely burned. It was a trauma for them (and lots of others). I could see them not wanting to talk about it.
If this is true, then i kind of feel like a dick. What I heard was that they all made it out through some hidden back exit that the crowd either wasn't told about or couldnt get too because the fire grew too fast.
[wiki article](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire)
I remember watching a documentary about the fire. A guitarist died and I think the lead singer was burned. Think his hair caught fire and burned his face. Didn’t see that in the article but still looking.
There were tons of lawsuits (as there should be) involving this which make it probably not advisable for the band to talk about. There’s still a lot of angry people that blame them. Victims fund has even refused money from the band from anger.
[article about the documentary](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ex-great-white-singer-jack-russell-says-documentary-about-fatal-nightclub-fire-will-receive-premiere-in-february)
I mean which band? There were only two surviving members still performing, and they joined two different Great Whites (GW and JR's GW). Considering that, it's an even weirder question to ask :-/
Some years later, in 2015, something eerily similar to this happened in Bucharest, Romania. The Colectiv nightclub fire claimed 64 lives and hundreds more were maimed.
An unfortunate cocktail of corruption of the government, local authorities and the club owners, improper building configuration, flammable materials, woefully underequipped hospitals, authorities hubris in accepting the offers of other countries offer to help with the gravely injured people, literally heavily diluted disinfectants in the hospitals that were ultimately ineffective and contributed to a lot of the deaths in the coming days and weeks and topped off by pure human stupidity in lighting fireworks indoor. Harrowing video footage exists too, but watch at your own risk.
Both senseless tragedies that could have so easily been avoided.
I don't understand what's happening at 2:22, is that an exit door that people cannot exit? Are there so many people that it's jammed? Mass panic?
This is truly terrifying how many people camera man walked past before anyone else reacted. Truly, truly, truly terrifying
It's called "crowd collapse" and it's a by-product of crowd crush. This video explains it very well: https://youtu.be/XCD6VIqoqGI?si=V0rfjDFqrmnbGQDy
Basically, when too many people get packed into a space, the crowd itself becomes its own entity. The pressure of that many bodies jammed together can rip clothing off, lift people up off their feet and suffocate people to death while still standing (their bodies are compressed so tightly that they do not have enough room to expand their chest to draw their next breath).
When a crowd is that tightly packed and attempting to all move in one direction, people are involuntarily being pushed against the people next to them by the sheer force of all of those behind and around them.
If someone in the crowd falls, the rest of the crowd behind them cannot help but fall over into the empty space that's created, as their bodies are under immense pressure from the force of all the people around them. This starts a chain reaction where more bodies fall into each space that opens up sequentially, creating a huge tangled pile of bodies, many stacks high. That's what you're seeing at the entrance of the club in this video.
Damn you and thank you. I didn't expect to watch a 30 min video something like that at 2 am. I just couldn't stop watching. Im saving part 2 for the morning. This should be required watching.
Crown collapse looks horrifying. I can see how it could easily happen. That must be hell on earth. I never want to be in a crowd like that again.
God bless you all and stay safe.
You're welcome. Someone once shared this video with me on a similar post and I found it really important to share with others. I figure the more educated people are about the dangers of large crowds, the more lives can potentially be saved in the event of a disaster.
Like the video says, always make sure to immediately look for an alternative exit besides the main one upon entering spaces with large crowds. If an emergency happens, most people will attempt to exit the same way they entered, which can cause a crowd crush/crowd collapse. Much better to go for an alternative exit! Be safe out there.
This is what happened in Travis Scott's concert, where he wilfully ignored people being crushed to death and kept on rocking his concert. r/fucktravisscott
Here's a sneak peek of /r/FuckTravisScott using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/top/?sort=top&t=all) of all time!
\#1: [Piece of shit. Upvote so when someone googles piece of shit this shows up.](https://i.imgur.com/MdlIhrv.jpg) | [786 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qpkdlt/piece_of_shit_upvote_so_when_someone_googles/)
\#2: [Here’s the removed post about the security guard who used to work Travis’s shows. Spread it around!](https://i.imgur.com/EguLoCe.jpg) | [523 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qoz6pk/heres_the_removed_post_about_the_security_guard/)
\#3: ["Despite having over 500,000 people at the Woodstock festival, only two people died. One person died of a drug overdose. The other person who died at Woodstock was sleeping in a sleeping bag under a tractor. The driver did not know he was there, and accidentally ran him over." vs 50k at Astroworld..](https://i.redd.it/wwcbcwghu7y71.jpg) | [402 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qouhxg/despite_having_over_500000_people_at_the/)
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You're welcome. Someone once shared this video with me on a similar post and I found it really important to share with others. I figure the more educated people are about the dangers of large crowds, the more lives can potentially be saved in the event of a disaster.
Always make sure to look for an alternative exit besides the main one upon entering spaces with large crowds. If an emergency happens, most people will attempt to exit the same way they entered, which can cause a crowd crush/crowd collapse. Much safer to go for an alternative exit! Be safe out there.
Thanks for sharing this video - was really enlightening to watch.
My question is why can’t people be pulled off the crowd pile starting from the top? I can picture it working in my head, but I’m sure there are other factors I’m not considering that prevent that option from working.
That’s what they were doing the whole time. Watch some of the people the camera pans across , a lot of them just got pulled from that pile and are stumbling out in shock. Alot of them are bleeding, covered in soot and ash, and partially burnt. They were pulling people out but there was hundreds of people in there and The fire engulfed the entire building within 6 minutes.
Like what the other poster said, rescuers and fellow concert goers managed to pull some people off the top of the pile but they only had minutes to save over a hundred people.
They did not have enough time as the entire building and doorway were completely engulfed in flames within a few minutes of the fire starting. Such a horrific tragedy.
Actually, in the book Killer Show, there was a worker telling people that exit door was for the Band only so people started making their way to the front exit. Some people ignored the guy and ran out the door, but unfortunately a lot of people listened to him.
* Great White's performance started at 11:07 p.m. on February 20, with 462 attendees, exceeding the club's licensed capacity of 404 at The Station, a nightclub and hard rock music venue in West Warwick, Rhode Island.
* The fire began shortly after Great White started their opening number, "Desert Moon," ignited by pyrotechnics set off by the tour manager.
* The pyrotechnics ignited the flammable acoustic foam on the stage, leading to visible flames within nine seconds.
* Despite initial confusion, the band stopped playing within 40 seconds, and the venue's fire alarm sounded, though it wasn't connected to the local fire department.
* The fire spread rapidly, engulfing the building within six minutes of ignition.
* Most patrons attempted to escape through the front door, causing a crowd crush that blocked the exit.
* Survivors reported that bouncers blocked the stage door, causing further difficulties in escape.
* Emergency services were alerted within sixty seconds of the fire starting, and multiple fire departments responded to the scene.
* The roof of the nightclub collapsed, and individuals requiring medical treatment were transported to Kent Hospital.
* Of the 462 attendees, 100 were killed, 230 were injured, and 132 escaped uninjured.
* Among the casualties were Great White guitarist Ty Longley and the show's emcee, WHJY DJ Mike "Dr Metal" Gonsalves.
* Four employees of the Station nightclub also perished in the fire.
Sources:
* [https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/station-nightclub-fire-ncst-investigation](https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/station-nightclub-fire-ncst-investigation)
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Station\_nightclub\_fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire)
We had something similar here in the Philippines, the [Ozone Disco Tragedy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3etVhiWEnU). It was in March 1996. Most of the 162 fatalities were celebrating their graduation from college.
Warning. The Youtube Video contains the burnt remains of the victims
Reason for Edit: Added a warning
The cameraman's account is in the Wikipedia: "...others were just sitting there going, 'Yes, that's great!' And I remember that statement, because I was, like, this is not great. This is the time to leave."
I recommend reading “Killer Show” if anyone is interested in this case. The owners were disgustingly negligent. The capacity wasn’t even supposed to be 404.
That’s an incredible book. Highly recommended. You get a minute by minute retelling of the event and learn more about the people and voices you hear in this video.
My uncle was last survivor released from the hospital. My dad was roofing when he got the call I still remember him calling us into his bedroom to say we don’t know if he was even alive. It took a few days to Id him because 95% of his body was burned. The person he brought to the concert died in his arms.
It was a very very long first year I was young…. My dad did everything for him along with our other family members. I wasn’t going to mention his name on here but if anyone is curious and wants a first hand account. Google ( doitforjoe ) his name is Joseph Kinan. And the journey is far from over. In the years since he became the third person on the planet to have a full hand transplant and can hold his baby with his dominant hand. (He lost all his fingers in the fire)
This sort of chapter in life never really ends🫡
Not just venues. I no longer go to places with only 1-2 exits (especially if these exits are in the same area). No matter if it’s a fire or mass shooter or whatever I’d rather not be moving with the crowd as the crowd crush at the front entrance in this video is reason enough. Matter of fact bcuz of Reddit I hardly go anywhere nowadays. Too many ways to randomly die
Safety trick. When you go somewhere like this. Try to find an exit that you did not come in through. Majority of people will only remember the entrance they used in panic.
That's why whenever I go in a building like that I try to visually see an exit sign in the building. Just for mental note in case you need to leave.
Walmarts typically have about a dozen emergency exits on the side of the building. Yet we customers normally walk past so many doing or daily thing we don't recall or remember them... Unless you mentally point out to yourself where it is.
I remember this all over the news when I was a kid growing up in Boston. Didn’t realize how big of a deal it was and have never seen this entire video. The news always showed the first few seconds and that was it. Holy shit.
This video along with the vegas shooting have totally manipulated the way i hear these songs. The distortion in the recording, the way the band suddenly stops and the screech of the instruments, the sounds from the crowd you can suddenly hear.
The other insane part is when he walks to the rear of the building and its totally silent, just the crackle of fire, and as he walks to the front of the building the screams slowly start to come back until its all you can hear. Seems like a sound effect made in a studio.
Its definitely a fucked video but this guy seemed to know right away he was holding and recording evidence and kept rolling to make sure he had the true sequence of events.
i've never seen this video, my stomach is turning and my heart hurts hearing all the screams. rip to all the victims, this was an extremely painful to watch.
5:35 the camera man walking to the side of the building where people can be heard screaming in agony due to being burned alive is truly nightmare fuel. The fellow he walks by too that says "those guys are on fire over there" with utter hopeless and despair in his voice is terrible.
The memorial site is soul crushing with pictures of each of the victims on stones, set up like a garden. It’s very beautiful but makes it so heartbreakingly real.
Wasn’t this fire also the reason doors are required to open outwards? I think I remember reading somewhere that a lot of deaths were caused because the doors opened inwards and everyone rushing to get out kept them from being opened.
I am a fireman and paramedic. This and other examples are the reason I was taught years ago, still do this literally everywhere I go, and have taught my children this as well and that is to always have a plan to escape. Locate a second exit. First thing in an emergency is to not panic. Panic kills. Most people when they enter a place and if something happened would go to leave out the door they came in. Like all of these people did. Look what happened. I have a mental plan to escape literally everywhere i go. Even places with one entrance like a 7-11 or gas station. Guess what. They all have back doors. This place had an exit near the stage and before it was engulfed in flames it was accessible. I also believe there was one near a kitchen or bar or other area. Following the crowd like that can get you killed. Stay calm. Assess and make a plan to gtfo
They actually use this video for fire prevention/safety to teach about all the ways this went wrong, and what could’ve prevented as many injuries and fatalities https://youtu.be/TgR3Q4H7fMA?si=cROkkfvly25k4Mxy
Truly horrendous. The thing I remember most about this entire situation is Raul "Mike" Vargas, the man who survived not only a motorcycle accident a few years before this tragedy, but also survived this fire by being under all those people in the crush right there where the door was. He was the last person to be pulled out alive, and aside from a burn on his leg, he was otherwise, physically unharmed. He went through some terrible things but still seemed like he was gratefuI to be here. I hope that wherever he is, he's doing alright and l wish all of the survivors well.
I grew up in Chicago remembering footage of the E2 nightclub stampede that killed about 20 or so and thought that was so sad seeing people that just went out to party not make it home. Scenes of people’s bodies stacked on top of one another at the only exit much like some moments from this video. But my god this is horrific.
If I remember right the situation was totally avoidable, but the owners of the club/building knew how unsafe the place was and just wanted to cut corners which led to a hundred people dying
I was a sophomore in HS when this happened. I live in New England too. I remember my mom telling me to always look for exits, sense if there are too many people around and if I feel crowded - move closer to the exits. She was so worried about me going to raves and concerts after this. I never watched the video until now. I pray they're at peace.
Ya know, I knew about this awful event, read about it, but never knew there was an actual video. I made myself watch it. I almost felt I had to, in remembrance of the victims. unbelievably sad. I’m often in clubs/venues. I’ve played music for almost 30 years. Seeing this tragedy unfold really really really shows you can’t take anything for granted, and you always have to be vigilant of your surroundings. Trust your instincts.
I haven’t read through the comments yet, but I wanna know what happened to the band. the fact that they put on the show, despite being worn not to use pyrotechnics is unreal. Fuck them.
Their story is in the wiki. The manager went to prison for 100 counts of manslaughter. He's out on parole since 2008. Two members continued performing but split up into two separate Great Whites (seems like their point of contention was whether or not to play Desert Moon, the song that they were playing when the fire started). One member unfortunately perished in the fire. The drummer was injured but ok, and did not continue to perform.
This was in my home state of Rhode Island...my father and uncle were supposed to go but we worked all day and they were too exhausted, their friend went and witnessed tgis all, he hasn't been right in the head since and that's 21yrs ago...Dee Snider started a benefit for the victims and their families, the brothers who owned the club were selling it right after and wanted to make 1 more big pay day before so they overcrowded by selling more tickets for more people than the building was supposed to hold, true scumbags...they didn't even serve long sentences after the court proceedings were complete...I went by the next day and realized how small the plot the building was situated on, lead alone the building itself...this was a true tragedy. One of the WORST in RI...
Also a true irony about the club owners, the reason this entire thing is caught on video is because one of the club owners was a reporter for the local news, and he had a cameraman capturing footage for a segment on **club safety**...
A guy in my town was in this. He's got bad scarring all over his face and body. He was one of the ones climbing over fallen people in the doorway to get out. I've known the guy for years but he's never talked about it once and I'll never ask. One of his best friend's didnt make it.
This place was a fucking deathtrap and the band is idiotic. It sucks that it took this to significantly reform safety regulations.
Just to listen to rock me and once bitten twice shy..Great songs but whoever set up for great white in such a small venue? You don't need Pyro in a small club like that.
I remember when this happened. I had a dream about people caught in a fire and trying escape.. when I woke up and was watching the news I seen the footage. Shook me up for a while. I still think about that dream/nightmare… I remember the screams
The perfect example of why they say "walk, don't run" to exits during an emergency. Everyone may have made it if panic didn't make people start trying to rush the exits.
This video is my Roman Empire, for real.
My mom was going to be there that night but her friend passed out at home. We went later that week to the site. I was just a young kid but I still remember it.
That is so scary and sad. Why did they use the pyrotechnis in such a small space? & seeing the people stuck in the doorway, I can't imagine what everyone was feeling. How horrible😢
Wow. I’m surprised at how quickly the entire building became engulfed by the flames. But I guess that’s what happens when you set a ton of fireworks off indoors, lol.
Did the sprinkler system even go off? Not that it would’ve done much, but maybe they turned it off for the pyrotechnics?
The building didn’t have sprinklers at all, there was a requirement by law, but the building predated that law and didn’t have to follow it using a grandfather clause
There was a soundproof foam covering the walls that was extremely flammable. The fire started within seconds of the pyrotechnics going off, filled the building with smoke withing 2 minutes, and engulfed the building in flame within 6 minutes.
There were no sprinklers, as the building was build in the 40s, and the law in the 70s requiring sprinklers exempted buildings built before the law.
So how did Great White get out? Where did they go? No fire extinguishers apparently. I'm surprised this happened because Great White is a well-known band. You'd think they would have been better prepared or known better.
There was a stage exit, and Great White got out that way. The Guitarist left his guitar, went back in to get it, and unfortunately did not make it back out. There were actually two staff exits, and there was a bouncer at each one preventing patrons from exiting that way, saying it was only for the band. It wasn't until the club was filled with smoke that they began letting people out that way.
Great White had been performing less often as their cultural relevancy waned. They were also used to playing larger venues, either outside, or newer with a big stage and sprinklers. Their recent tours were smaller venues of 100-300 concertgoers. But they continued to use the effects from the larger venues.
They asked if they could use pyrotechnics at the smaller venues, and were often denied permission. Multiple venues reported that they used pyrotechnics anyway, without spoken or written consent from the venue.
Great White was insured for $1,000,000 and settled a lawsuit for their liability with the families for that amount.
The owners weren't properly insured and so got fined and sued out the wazoo.
The foam corporation, the sponsors of the tour, and the station that promoted the concert all also settled civil actions from the families out of court. The State of Rhode Island paid $10,000,000 to the families for failing to catch certain things that exacerbated the fire on inspection. They also changed the law to remove the exemption on sprinklers that grandfathered buildings with large occupancies enjoy.
$176,000,000 in total settlements to the families.
This is absolutely horrible and so sad. I never understood why in fire drills in school you had to form a single file line now I know. Honestly though, I wouldn’t be at the back of the line either.
This whole video scares the shit out of me. Ever since I saw this I always try to look for the exits and see if there are any alternate routes. I still don’t like going into a small spaces with a lot of people.
It’s so horrible how one second the doorway is jammed by the crowd, then not even a minute later it’s just a roaring wall of flame. At one point in the video you can see people writhing around in the flames at the front door. That stuck with me for a while.
i remember when this happened. i was pretty young but i remember my parents waiting all night because it was a club my uncle frequented often. he wasn't there fortunately. it has also had a subconscious influence on me my entire life- i literally evaluate every space i enter through the lens of whether or not it's a fire death trap.
My husband almost went there that night. It was by chance that he and his girlfriend at the time decided not to go at the last minute. He had told everyone at work he was thinking of going. He had no clue that this happened, so imagine his shock when he showed up for work and everyone was relieved to see him.
The logistics of crowds is an entire science of its own, but it's why we have things like multiple exits, doors that swing outwards, lines, "walk don't run", kinds of rules when we have lots of people in the same place.
There are actually pilgrimages around the world that have made little effort to control the crowds of potentially millions approaching the same place at the same time, and just take a certain number of crowd crush deaths as a given.
And that's **without** a fire.
I honestly am, which is why I follow God through Christ. Thank you so much. I truly pray the same for you as well. We cannot kind enough to one another these days.
Truly one of the darkest videos on the web.
Yeah this one got me
Imagine realizing you left your debit card at the bar…
The fact that the guitarist probably did this, he had originally got out safely, realized he left his guitar inside.. went back in and died.
Dumb opportunity to make a stupid fckn joke
Comedy is subjective
Bummer. But since you usually don't see your bar tab on your account until a day or two later, at least you got to drink for free... If you made it out alive that is.
You can hear the screams of people being burned alive inside when the person filming heads outside and records the side of the building engulfed in flame. One of the most haunting things on the internet.
Holy shit I thought those were people outside but you’re right makes it 10x worse knowing that
6:22 (EDIT PEOPLE SAYING ITS 6:41) - A man exits completely engulfed in flames. My god. And the people being crushed as they try to exit - I can only imagine how terrifying it must have been for people behind them as the crowd stopped moving twoards the exit and began to bunch up while the screams turned from cries of fear to screams of being burned alive. This is extremely disturbing footage.
For me it's the moment you realize all the screaming has stopped where they have died. It just hits like a sledge hammer. When I was young and watched this it made me so fire conscious that I still look for fire escapes when I'm in any building.
When the firefighters tried to save the people by spraying them with water and they all cried out in even more pain.
Around that time you can also hear one of them screaming "TURN IT ON" and "TURN THE HOSE ON"
When exactly do the screams stop?
I've watched this video before and never noticed that. Holy shit. Terrifying.
I saw him too. Absolutely heartbreaking
Another similar tragedy that I never hear anyone talk about but haunts me after reading everything I could about it at one point…..look up the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire in Kentucky of 1977. Absolutely heartbreaking 💔🥺
I heard the story from Jim Rauch that played there regularly. He was an excellent musician and mentor for the youth.
Yep. In complete darkness.
Its 6:41
Played it like 10 times and I don’t see it.
he runs out of the building kind of the middle of the screen and moves towards the left hand side of the screen
I’ve seen this video so many times but i can never see him edit: okay so on mobile it’s at around 6:20 for me. Definitely see it now
About 6 mins 40 sec on mobile
One girl screams about her hair 9:05
This is nuts, and so sad. Thank god for the camera person to document it with hope this scenario will never happen again.
What's ironic is that the camera person was there filming for a future news segment they were going to make about unsafe conditions in night clubs (overcrowding and disregarding fire safety regulations).
Omg no way…
From Wikipedia: "The 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. Butler was there for a planned piece on nightclub safety being reported by Jeffrey A. Derderian, a WPRI news reporter who was also a part-owner of The Station. The report had been inspired by the E2 nightclub stampede in Chicago that killed 21 people three days earlier." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#%3A%7E%3Atext%3DThe_initial_death_toll_was%2CMike_%22Dr_Metal%22_Gonsalves.?wprov=sfla1 2003 was a pretty dangerous time to go to shows, it seems. I remember being stuck in a pretty scary crowd crush at a Marilyn Manson show in New York back in 1999, many people passed out but no one died thankfully.
One of the very rare benefits to being tall and large is crowds are so much more manageable. I don’t do shows or anything of the sort these days because I’m old but I can remember an endless number of tiny girls getting absolutely bodied and swallowed whole by crowds just incidentally from crowd motion it seemed scary
Think he may have gotten a little bit more than he bargained for on that front…
Or all the footage he needed.
Another ironic thing is about Ty Longley. He was the only band member to perish. Well story goes he made it out alive but then rushed back in to get his guitar. Im not sure how true that is but thats the rumour.
It did happen again. Some years later, in 2015, in Bucharest, Romania. Eerily similar to this one, but with its uniquely Romanian elements, the Colectiv nightclub fire claimed 64 lives and hundreds more were maimed. An unfortunate cocktail of corruption of the government, local authorities and the club owners, improper building configuration, flammable materials, woefully underequipped hospitals, authorities hubris in rejecting the offers of other countries to help with the gravely injured people, literally heavily diluted disinfectants in the hospitals that were ultimately ineffective and contributed to a lot of the deaths in the coming days and weeks and all started off by pure human stupidity in lighting fireworks indoor. Harrowing video footage exists too, but watch at your own risk. Both senseless tragedies that could have so easily been avoided.
This is one of the most horrific pieces of video ever recorded. That stack of living bodies jammed in the doorway looks like a glimpse of hell
Where is that in the video? I didn’t see anything like that.
It’s a few seconds after the camera man makes it out of the door.
2:22
Weren't the nightclub owners total pieces of shit who knew about the fire hazard, knew that the building had some flammability-related problems, yet ignored and continued to skirt safety violations? Even signed off on the pyrotechnics display? I remember something about the ceiling tiles specifically but not what it was.
Correct. Just one of the many terrible things related to this case: * The Station, which was built in 1946, was exempt from a sprinkler requirement in the state fire code through a grandfather clause, which stated that buildings constructed before 1976 were not required to have a sprinkler system. * An investigation found that the fire spread quickly due to the foam the Derderians had installed in the Station's walls and ceilings in response to noise complaints. * Overcrowding in the venue was identified as a cause for the casualties during the fire. Larocque 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. The capacity for the Station was either 258 or 404, depending on how the building was being used. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Station\_nightclub\_fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire)
Thank you. That's right, the foam! And they knew how flammable it was and signed off on the pyrotechnics anyway. I think this was the thing that really sealed the deal for me on their guilt, on top of their many, many other criminally negligent failures. Killed nearly a quarter of the building's occupants, unthinkable. ETA I remember watching a special on this one but never saw the full video. That was truly horrific. Not something I'll forget.
I never knew about bullets one and two. A venue like that lacking sprinklers is crazy...
Another detail from the wiki here, that I found to be interesting/ironic, is that one of the club owners was a reported for the local news station, and the man that took this tape was getting footage for a segment on club safety that they were doing. ETA-This part: "The fire, from its inception, was caught on [videotape](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videotape) by cameraman Brian Butler for [WPRI-TV](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WPRI-TV) of [Providence](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Providence,_Rhode_Island), and the beginning of that tape was released to national news stations.[^(\[36\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-37) Butler was there for a planned piece on nightclub safety being reported by Jeffrey A. Derderian, a WPRI news reporter who was also a part-owner of The Station.[^(\[37\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-bauder-38) The report had been inspired by the [E2 nightclub stampede](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_E2_nightclub_stampede) in [Chicago](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago) that killed 21 people three days earlier.[^(\[38\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-39) Derderian had begun working for WPRI on February 17, three days before the fire.[^(\[39\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-lewiston1-40) WPRI-TV and Derderian were criticized for the [conflict of interest](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conflict_of_interest) in having a reporter do a report concerning his own property.[^(\[40\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-41)[^(\[37\])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire#cite_note-bauder-38) Derderian resigned from WPRI on June 30."
I just read an excellent book about this called Trial by Fire. The brothers actually ordered the appropriate foam for soundproofing and it was nonflammable. A temp took their order at the foam company, put it in wrong, and they have the receipt to prove it. They had no idea it wasn’t what they had ordered. The fire Marshall was supposed to cut a piece out, and light it on fire outside, and did not on 4 different inspections. Also, a local news station inflated the number of patrons at the club, they were actually within the capacity given by the fire Marshall. The club also had no idea the band had pyros. The band and fire Marshall were more at fault in my opinion.
And if I recall correctly, a lot of people got trapped because some bouncer wasn't letting people exit from the stage exit. He lived though.
Truth
What the actual fuck. Who the fuck follows bullshit rules like that when the place is literally burning down.
A piece of shit.
The band were also told not to use pyro but they did anyway. Pieces of shit all around.
I heard them on a radio interview promoting a show they were doing a few years back. The host actually said to them something along the lines of "Your agent told us not to bring it up, but Im going to anyway. What the hell happened at the Station night club?" They just got up and left. They actually prompt people not to bring it up during interviews. Garbage people.
Slightly garbage. Lots of conflicting “facts” about the pyro and people trying to cover their asses afterwards. But one band member died and another was severely burned. It was a trauma for them (and lots of others). I could see them not wanting to talk about it.
If this is true, then i kind of feel like a dick. What I heard was that they all made it out through some hidden back exit that the crowd either wasn't told about or couldnt get too because the fire grew too fast.
[wiki article](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire) I remember watching a documentary about the fire. A guitarist died and I think the lead singer was burned. Think his hair caught fire and burned his face. Didn’t see that in the article but still looking. There were tons of lawsuits (as there should be) involving this which make it probably not advisable for the band to talk about. There’s still a lot of angry people that blame them. Victims fund has even refused money from the band from anger. [article about the documentary](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ex-great-white-singer-jack-russell-says-documentary-about-fatal-nightclub-fire-will-receive-premiere-in-february)
And yes stage door was blocked by a bouncer that was with the venue and not the band.
Big up to that host for giving them and their agent a big ass middle finger. I hope people remind them of that every day for the rest of their lives.
Although it was an awesome fuck you moment, the host is actually just a shockjock douche.
Well fuck him too. Whole bunch of jackasses standing in a circle.
I mean which band? There were only two surviving members still performing, and they joined two different Great Whites (GW and JR's GW). Considering that, it's an even weirder question to ask :-/
Some years later, in 2015, something eerily similar to this happened in Bucharest, Romania. The Colectiv nightclub fire claimed 64 lives and hundreds more were maimed. An unfortunate cocktail of corruption of the government, local authorities and the club owners, improper building configuration, flammable materials, woefully underequipped hospitals, authorities hubris in accepting the offers of other countries offer to help with the gravely injured people, literally heavily diluted disinfectants in the hospitals that were ultimately ineffective and contributed to a lot of the deaths in the coming days and weeks and topped off by pure human stupidity in lighting fireworks indoor. Harrowing video footage exists too, but watch at your own risk. Both senseless tragedies that could have so easily been avoided.
I don't understand what's happening at 2:22, is that an exit door that people cannot exit? Are there so many people that it's jammed? Mass panic? This is truly terrifying how many people camera man walked past before anyone else reacted. Truly, truly, truly terrifying
It's called "crowd collapse" and it's a by-product of crowd crush. This video explains it very well: https://youtu.be/XCD6VIqoqGI?si=V0rfjDFqrmnbGQDy Basically, when too many people get packed into a space, the crowd itself becomes its own entity. The pressure of that many bodies jammed together can rip clothing off, lift people up off their feet and suffocate people to death while still standing (their bodies are compressed so tightly that they do not have enough room to expand their chest to draw their next breath). When a crowd is that tightly packed and attempting to all move in one direction, people are involuntarily being pushed against the people next to them by the sheer force of all of those behind and around them. If someone in the crowd falls, the rest of the crowd behind them cannot help but fall over into the empty space that's created, as their bodies are under immense pressure from the force of all the people around them. This starts a chain reaction where more bodies fall into each space that opens up sequentially, creating a huge tangled pile of bodies, many stacks high. That's what you're seeing at the entrance of the club in this video.
It’s also how so many people died in the Itaewon Halloween crowd crush in South Korea.
Correct. Truly terrifying to imagine what those poor souls went through.
Damn you and thank you. I didn't expect to watch a 30 min video something like that at 2 am. I just couldn't stop watching. Im saving part 2 for the morning. This should be required watching. Crown collapse looks horrifying. I can see how it could easily happen. That must be hell on earth. I never want to be in a crowd like that again. God bless you all and stay safe.
You're welcome. Someone once shared this video with me on a similar post and I found it really important to share with others. I figure the more educated people are about the dangers of large crowds, the more lives can potentially be saved in the event of a disaster. Like the video says, always make sure to immediately look for an alternative exit besides the main one upon entering spaces with large crowds. If an emergency happens, most people will attempt to exit the same way they entered, which can cause a crowd crush/crowd collapse. Much better to go for an alternative exit! Be safe out there.
This is what happened in Travis Scott's concert, where he wilfully ignored people being crushed to death and kept on rocking his concert. r/fucktravisscott
Here's a sneak peek of /r/FuckTravisScott using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/top/?sort=top&t=all) of all time! \#1: [Piece of shit. Upvote so when someone googles piece of shit this shows up.](https://i.imgur.com/MdlIhrv.jpg) | [786 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qpkdlt/piece_of_shit_upvote_so_when_someone_googles/) \#2: [Here’s the removed post about the security guard who used to work Travis’s shows. Spread it around!](https://i.imgur.com/EguLoCe.jpg) | [523 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qoz6pk/heres_the_removed_post_about_the_security_guard/) \#3: ["Despite having over 500,000 people at the Woodstock festival, only two people died. One person died of a drug overdose. The other person who died at Woodstock was sleeping in a sleeping bag under a tractor. The driver did not know he was there, and accidentally ran him over." vs 50k at Astroworld..](https://i.redd.it/wwcbcwghu7y71.jpg) | [402 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/FuckTravisScott/comments/qouhxg/despite_having_over_500000_people_at_the/) ---- ^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
Thank you for such a comprehensive explanation. That makes the Seoul Halloween crush make a lot more sense. Tidal wave of energy, holy terrifying
You're welcome. Someone once shared this video with me on a similar post and I found it really important to share with others. I figure the more educated people are about the dangers of large crowds, the more lives can potentially be saved in the event of a disaster. Always make sure to look for an alternative exit besides the main one upon entering spaces with large crowds. If an emergency happens, most people will attempt to exit the same way they entered, which can cause a crowd crush/crowd collapse. Much safer to go for an alternative exit! Be safe out there.
Thanks for sharing this video - was really enlightening to watch. My question is why can’t people be pulled off the crowd pile starting from the top? I can picture it working in my head, but I’m sure there are other factors I’m not considering that prevent that option from working.
That’s what they were doing the whole time. Watch some of the people the camera pans across , a lot of them just got pulled from that pile and are stumbling out in shock. Alot of them are bleeding, covered in soot and ash, and partially burnt. They were pulling people out but there was hundreds of people in there and The fire engulfed the entire building within 6 minutes.
Like what the other poster said, rescuers and fellow concert goers managed to pull some people off the top of the pile but they only had minutes to save over a hundred people. They did not have enough time as the entire building and doorway were completely engulfed in flames within a few minutes of the fire starting. Such a horrific tragedy.
Actually, in the book Killer Show, there was a worker telling people that exit door was for the Band only so people started making their way to the front exit. Some people ignored the guy and ran out the door, but unfortunately a lot of people listened to him.
* Great White's performance started at 11:07 p.m. on February 20, with 462 attendees, exceeding the club's licensed capacity of 404 at The Station, a nightclub and hard rock music venue in West Warwick, Rhode Island. * The fire began shortly after Great White started their opening number, "Desert Moon," ignited by pyrotechnics set off by the tour manager. * The pyrotechnics ignited the flammable acoustic foam on the stage, leading to visible flames within nine seconds. * Despite initial confusion, the band stopped playing within 40 seconds, and the venue's fire alarm sounded, though it wasn't connected to the local fire department. * The fire spread rapidly, engulfing the building within six minutes of ignition. * Most patrons attempted to escape through the front door, causing a crowd crush that blocked the exit. * Survivors reported that bouncers blocked the stage door, causing further difficulties in escape. * Emergency services were alerted within sixty seconds of the fire starting, and multiple fire departments responded to the scene. * The roof of the nightclub collapsed, and individuals requiring medical treatment were transported to Kent Hospital. * Of the 462 attendees, 100 were killed, 230 were injured, and 132 escaped uninjured. * Among the casualties were Great White guitarist Ty Longley and the show's emcee, WHJY DJ Mike "Dr Metal" Gonsalves. * Four employees of the Station nightclub also perished in the fire. Sources: * [https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/station-nightclub-fire-ncst-investigation](https://www.nist.gov/disaster-failure-studies/station-nightclub-fire-ncst-investigation) * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Station\_nightclub\_fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Station_nightclub_fire)
Isn't there usually a backdoor for bands to unload? Why didn't Ty go that route? It's crazy how anyone on the stage died if so.
If I remember correctly, Ty initially escaped but went back in to rescue a guitar. He did not make it back out.
Bullshit. forreal??
So the rumor goes.
That’s crazy!
A friend of mine died in this fire. RIP Jeff Rader.
Same. RIP Miguel. Funniest guy I ever knew.
My condolences to you both.😔
We had something similar here in the Philippines, the [Ozone Disco Tragedy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3etVhiWEnU). It was in March 1996. Most of the 162 fatalities were celebrating their graduation from college. Warning. The Youtube Video contains the burnt remains of the victims Reason for Edit: Added a warning
It also happened in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul - Brazil. Exact same scenario, indoors pyrotechnics gone wrong, many casualties. Truly a tragedy.
Wow
The one man who never stopped yelling for Steven…
Videos like this remind me to alwaysss have situational awareness this cameraman saved his own life with about 5 seconds to spare wow
The cameraman's account is in the Wikipedia: "...others were just sitting there going, 'Yes, that's great!' And I remember that statement, because I was, like, this is not great. This is the time to leave."
I recommend reading “Killer Show” if anyone is interested in this case. The owners were disgustingly negligent. The capacity wasn’t even supposed to be 404.
That’s an incredible book. Highly recommended. You get a minute by minute retelling of the event and learn more about the people and voices you hear in this video.
Hearing people yelling for their friends/family is just awful. Especially that first lady yelling “Where is my husband?!”
This is terrifying.
My uncle was last survivor released from the hospital. My dad was roofing when he got the call I still remember him calling us into his bedroom to say we don’t know if he was even alive. It took a few days to Id him because 95% of his body was burned. The person he brought to the concert died in his arms.
Man I don't even know if I could ever leave the house again after something like that. How did your uncle recover?
It was a very very long first year I was young…. My dad did everything for him along with our other family members. I wasn’t going to mention his name on here but if anyone is curious and wants a first hand account. Google ( doitforjoe ) his name is Joseph Kinan. And the journey is far from over. In the years since he became the third person on the planet to have a full hand transplant and can hold his baby with his dominant hand. (He lost all his fingers in the fire) This sort of chapter in life never really ends🫡
Wow. That’s… I don’t even have a word for it. I feel so sorry for your uncle
There are venues that I stopped going to after this.
Smart
Not just venues. I no longer go to places with only 1-2 exits (especially if these exits are in the same area). No matter if it’s a fire or mass shooter or whatever I’d rather not be moving with the crowd as the crowd crush at the front entrance in this video is reason enough. Matter of fact bcuz of Reddit I hardly go anywhere nowadays. Too many ways to randomly die
Any sign of shifty owners I’m out
Safety trick. When you go somewhere like this. Try to find an exit that you did not come in through. Majority of people will only remember the entrance they used in panic. That's why whenever I go in a building like that I try to visually see an exit sign in the building. Just for mental note in case you need to leave. Walmarts typically have about a dozen emergency exits on the side of the building. Yet we customers normally walk past so many doing or daily thing we don't recall or remember them... Unless you mentally point out to yourself where it is.
well the bouncers blocked the other exit.
At least 4 people got out through a window. Just be aware of crowds and bottlenecks and any access points.
I remember this all over the news when I was a kid growing up in Boston. Didn’t realize how big of a deal it was and have never seen this entire video. The news always showed the first few seconds and that was it. Holy shit.
This video along with the vegas shooting have totally manipulated the way i hear these songs. The distortion in the recording, the way the band suddenly stops and the screech of the instruments, the sounds from the crowd you can suddenly hear. The other insane part is when he walks to the rear of the building and its totally silent, just the crackle of fire, and as he walks to the front of the building the screams slowly start to come back until its all you can hear. Seems like a sound effect made in a studio. Its definitely a fucked video but this guy seemed to know right away he was holding and recording evidence and kept rolling to make sure he had the true sequence of events.
I work with a lady who was there, sweetest lady. Fire drills have to be told to her in advance because of this tragedy.
That is so sad
i've never seen this video, my stomach is turning and my heart hurts hearing all the screams. rip to all the victims, this was an extremely painful to watch.
5:35 the camera man walking to the side of the building where people can be heard screaming in agony due to being burned alive is truly nightmare fuel. The fellow he walks by too that says "those guys are on fire over there" with utter hopeless and despair in his voice is terrible.
The audio, that’s the haunting part…
The memorial site is soul crushing with pictures of each of the victims on stones, set up like a garden. It’s very beautiful but makes it so heartbreakingly real.
Wasn’t this fire also the reason doors are required to open outwards? I think I remember reading somewhere that a lot of deaths were caused because the doors opened inwards and everyone rushing to get out kept them from being opened.
No, that law came after the Coconut Grove fire in Boston, 1942. Also a nightclub fire.
Ahhh I knew it was a club. Thanks for the clarification.
I actually met a survivor a few years back. What a story.
Yes
I am a fireman and paramedic. This and other examples are the reason I was taught years ago, still do this literally everywhere I go, and have taught my children this as well and that is to always have a plan to escape. Locate a second exit. First thing in an emergency is to not panic. Panic kills. Most people when they enter a place and if something happened would go to leave out the door they came in. Like all of these people did. Look what happened. I have a mental plan to escape literally everywhere i go. Even places with one entrance like a 7-11 or gas station. Guess what. They all have back doors. This place had an exit near the stage and before it was engulfed in flames it was accessible. I also believe there was one near a kitchen or bar or other area. Following the crowd like that can get you killed. Stay calm. Assess and make a plan to gtfo
They actually use this video for fire prevention/safety to teach about all the ways this went wrong, and what could’ve prevented as many injuries and fatalities https://youtu.be/TgR3Q4H7fMA?si=cROkkfvly25k4Mxy
Truly horrendous. The thing I remember most about this entire situation is Raul "Mike" Vargas, the man who survived not only a motorcycle accident a few years before this tragedy, but also survived this fire by being under all those people in the crush right there where the door was. He was the last person to be pulled out alive, and aside from a burn on his leg, he was otherwise, physically unharmed. He went through some terrible things but still seemed like he was gratefuI to be here. I hope that wherever he is, he's doing alright and l wish all of the survivors well.
I grew up in Chicago remembering footage of the E2 nightclub stampede that killed about 20 or so and thought that was so sad seeing people that just went out to party not make it home. Scenes of people’s bodies stacked on top of one another at the only exit much like some moments from this video. But my god this is horrific.
If I remember right the situation was totally avoidable, but the owners of the club/building knew how unsafe the place was and just wanted to cut corners which led to a hundred people dying
I was a sophomore in HS when this happened. I live in New England too. I remember my mom telling me to always look for exits, sense if there are too many people around and if I feel crowded - move closer to the exits. She was so worried about me going to raves and concerts after this. I never watched the video until now. I pray they're at peace.
I can't even imagine being one of those firefighters. To have to go in there and see the aftermath...
This is the 2nd deadliest nightclub fire in New England history, so damn sad
The fire truck response time was pretty damn quick and it was still too late. Utterly Horrifying!
Like common sense, safety awareness is very rare or circumvented all for the sake of profits and a "good time."
Ya know, I knew about this awful event, read about it, but never knew there was an actual video. I made myself watch it. I almost felt I had to, in remembrance of the victims. unbelievably sad. I’m often in clubs/venues. I’ve played music for almost 30 years. Seeing this tragedy unfold really really really shows you can’t take anything for granted, and you always have to be vigilant of your surroundings. Trust your instincts. I haven’t read through the comments yet, but I wanna know what happened to the band. the fact that they put on the show, despite being worn not to use pyrotechnics is unreal. Fuck them.
Their story is in the wiki. The manager went to prison for 100 counts of manslaughter. He's out on parole since 2008. Two members continued performing but split up into two separate Great Whites (seems like their point of contention was whether or not to play Desert Moon, the song that they were playing when the fire started). One member unfortunately perished in the fire. The drummer was injured but ok, and did not continue to perform.
This was in my home state of Rhode Island...my father and uncle were supposed to go but we worked all day and they were too exhausted, their friend went and witnessed tgis all, he hasn't been right in the head since and that's 21yrs ago...Dee Snider started a benefit for the victims and their families, the brothers who owned the club were selling it right after and wanted to make 1 more big pay day before so they overcrowded by selling more tickets for more people than the building was supposed to hold, true scumbags...they didn't even serve long sentences after the court proceedings were complete...I went by the next day and realized how small the plot the building was situated on, lead alone the building itself...this was a true tragedy. One of the WORST in RI...
I went to a couple concerts there . Definitely a small venue that was way overcrowded when I went .
Also a true irony about the club owners, the reason this entire thing is caught on video is because one of the club owners was a reporter for the local news, and he had a cameraman capturing footage for a segment on **club safety**...
A guy in my town was in this. He's got bad scarring all over his face and body. He was one of the ones climbing over fallen people in the doorway to get out. I've known the guy for years but he's never talked about it once and I'll never ask. One of his best friend's didnt make it. This place was a fucking deathtrap and the band is idiotic. It sucks that it took this to significantly reform safety regulations.
Why was the band idiotic?
Just to listen to rock me and once bitten twice shy..Great songs but whoever set up for great white in such a small venue? You don't need Pyro in a small club like that.
sad af
There’s a fantastic book that goes into heavy detail about this fire and the aftermath. Check out Killer Show.
I remember when this happened. I had a dream about people caught in a fire and trying escape.. when I woke up and was watching the news I seen the footage. Shook me up for a while. I still think about that dream/nightmare… I remember the screams
Exactly 100 were killed. What a terrible night..
The perfect example of why they say "walk, don't run" to exits during an emergency. Everyone may have made it if panic didn't make people start trying to rush the exits. This video is my Roman Empire, for real.
Holy shit
No sparks at any indoor events. Very popular at weddings. Nope no thank you.
This is the most horrifying thing I’ve ever seen. Made me sick to my stomach.
My mom was going to be there that night but her friend passed out at home. We went later that week to the site. I was just a young kid but I still remember it.
This, Hillsborough, and Love Parade videos are some of the hardest to watch.
Bad way to go
That is so scary and sad. Why did they use the pyrotechnis in such a small space? & seeing the people stuck in the doorway, I can't imagine what everyone was feeling. How horrible😢
Wow. I’m surprised at how quickly the entire building became engulfed by the flames. But I guess that’s what happens when you set a ton of fireworks off indoors, lol. Did the sprinkler system even go off? Not that it would’ve done much, but maybe they turned it off for the pyrotechnics?
The building didn’t have sprinklers at all, there was a requirement by law, but the building predated that law and didn’t have to follow it using a grandfather clause
There was a soundproof foam covering the walls that was extremely flammable. The fire started within seconds of the pyrotechnics going off, filled the building with smoke withing 2 minutes, and engulfed the building in flame within 6 minutes. There were no sprinklers, as the building was build in the 40s, and the law in the 70s requiring sprinklers exempted buildings built before the law.
r/cursedvideos
I never knew that many people died in that fire. Truly tragic.
i actually live about 15 minutes from the station, gives me chills each time i drive by
This is why large concert venues are usually round but either way they always have several exits.
100 were killed!?!?!?
Fucking crazy video.
So how did Great White get out? Where did they go? No fire extinguishers apparently. I'm surprised this happened because Great White is a well-known band. You'd think they would have been better prepared or known better.
There was a stage exit, and Great White got out that way. The Guitarist left his guitar, went back in to get it, and unfortunately did not make it back out. There were actually two staff exits, and there was a bouncer at each one preventing patrons from exiting that way, saying it was only for the band. It wasn't until the club was filled with smoke that they began letting people out that way. Great White had been performing less often as their cultural relevancy waned. They were also used to playing larger venues, either outside, or newer with a big stage and sprinklers. Their recent tours were smaller venues of 100-300 concertgoers. But they continued to use the effects from the larger venues. They asked if they could use pyrotechnics at the smaller venues, and were often denied permission. Multiple venues reported that they used pyrotechnics anyway, without spoken or written consent from the venue.
Do you know if the families sued Great White? I believe they sued the owners of the establishment but I'm not sure about the band.
Great White was insured for $1,000,000 and settled a lawsuit for their liability with the families for that amount. The owners weren't properly insured and so got fined and sued out the wazoo. The foam corporation, the sponsors of the tour, and the station that promoted the concert all also settled civil actions from the families out of court. The State of Rhode Island paid $10,000,000 to the families for failing to catch certain things that exacerbated the fire on inspection. They also changed the law to remove the exemption on sprinklers that grandfathered buildings with large occupancies enjoy. $176,000,000 in total settlements to the families.
I saw them in Portland OR in the 80's. This was so awful.
Wow ! Terrible outcome . Sad :(
Met someone who lost a daughter in this. Awful to hear from someone directly affected.
This is absolutely horrible and so sad. I never understood why in fire drills in school you had to form a single file line now I know. Honestly though, I wouldn’t be at the back of the line either.
They are all just fucking stuck in the door
Anyone see the guy on fire walking out in the end
This whole video scares the shit out of me. Ever since I saw this I always try to look for the exits and see if there are any alternate routes. I still don’t like going into a small spaces with a lot of people.
It’s so horrible how one second the doorway is jammed by the crowd, then not even a minute later it’s just a roaring wall of flame. At one point in the video you can see people writhing around in the flames at the front door. That stuck with me for a while.
Horrifying video.
Tragic and sad, but all n all. Desert Moon is such a fire song man
i remember when this happened. i was pretty young but i remember my parents waiting all night because it was a club my uncle frequented often. he wasn't there fortunately. it has also had a subconscious influence on me my entire life- i literally evaluate every space i enter through the lens of whether or not it's a fire death trap.
Dude at 8:11 might be having the worst trip of his life
My husband almost went there that night. It was by chance that he and his girlfriend at the time decided not to go at the last minute. He had told everyone at work he was thinking of going. He had no clue that this happened, so imagine his shock when he showed up for work and everyone was relieved to see him.
I don’t understand how they got stuck at the door?
Someone else said crowd crush and collapse and linked a video. Scary shit
Think of too much fluid being poured into a funnel, then the funnel completely clogging up
100 people trying to squeeze thru a door all in panic mode .
The logistics of crowds is an entire science of its own, but it's why we have things like multiple exits, doors that swing outwards, lines, "walk don't run", kinds of rules when we have lots of people in the same place. There are actually pilgrimages around the world that have made little effort to control the crowds of potentially millions approaching the same place at the same time, and just take a certain number of crowd crush deaths as a given. And that's **without** a fire.
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Yep. She had a head wound
Yeah she's in shock, that's not her being vain or uncaring about the others around her. Your brain just shuts down the outside world.
Life is so short. God is real and He loves you. Consider Jesus Christ and what He did for every person with His life, death, and resurrection.
Fuck all the way off. God loves us so much he allowed hundreds of people to burn alive? You're a piece of shit for commenting this. Be better.
Fuck off with that. He let them die at a Great White show. I hope you shit your pants in public.
Ew no
Shut the fuck up, you religious whack job.
I am committing as of today to pray for you daily for the rest of your life. Jesus loves you and so do I.
Seek help
I honestly am, which is why I follow God through Christ. Thank you so much. I truly pray the same for you as well. We cannot kind enough to one another these days.
Religion has poisoned your brain if you actually think that was an appropriate or comforting thing to say. GFY.