Payout for Deadly Rhode Island Nightclub Fire Expected Within Weeks

Lawyers for the victims of a deadly 2003 nightclub fire that killed 100 people in Rhode Island hope to get a final settlement plan to a federal judge in roughly two weeks.

Attorney Mark Mandell said in court last Thursday that he wants to present a plan for a $176 million legal settlement to a judge as early as Dec. 16.

Until a judge approves the plan, the money cannot flow to those who were injured or lost loved ones in the Feb. 20, 2003, fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick. The blaze began when a rock band’s pyrotechnics ignited soundproofing foam inside the club.

More than 300 survivors and victims’ relatives sued after the blaze. Several dozen defendants settled rather than go to trial.