Workers’ Comp. Judge Fines Station Club Owners Over
$1M
Derderian Brothers Failed To Carry Workers’
Compensation Insurance When Club Burned Down
News Channel 10 (Providence, Rhode Island)
March 3, 2005
PROVIDENCE — The families of four nightclub employees killed in the
2003 West Warwick fire went to court Thursday morning to ask a judge
to order the club’s owners to pay death benefits and lost wages.
State Workers’ Compensation Court Judge Bruce Morin fined brothers
Michael and Jeffrey Derderian over $1 million for failing to carry
workers’ compensation insurance coverage when the club burned to the
ground in a deadly fire two years ago.
Investigators To Release Nightclub Fire Report Special Section: The
Station Nightclub Fire
“Bottom line is, they’ve always wanted to compensate the families of
their employees who are very valued people,” said Attorney Jeff Pine,
who represents Jeffrey Derderian in the case.
According to state law, if the Derderians had carried workers’
compensation insurance, the families of the employees killed by the
Feb. 20, 2003, blaze would have been eligible for $15,000 for burial
and other expenses, plus a portion of the deceased’s lost wages.
The families of Tracy King and Dina DeMaio are seeking benefits on
behalf of dependents, according to The Providence Journal. Petitions
filed in the cases of employees Andrea and Steven Mancini are seeking
death benefits. They’ll receive compensation ranging from death
benefits to burial costs.
The Station fire, sparked by a rock band’s pyrotechnics, killed 100
people and injured more than 200 others.
In August, a Workers’ Compensation Court judge found the Derderians
personally liable for a $1.07 million fine against their company,
Derco LLC, for failing to carry the required insurance.
The brothers have appealed, calling the fine excessive and arguing
they don’t have the money to pay it out.
The Derderians also face civil claims by fire victims’ families and
survivors of the blaze, and the state has charged them each with 200
counts of involuntary manslaughter.
There is no word on how much money the families will receive.
The Derderians have seven days to appeal the decision.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.