PROVIDENCE -- Jeffrey Derderian, co-owner of The Station nightclub where
a fire killed 100 people, has found a new job with a Rhode Island
company owned by a friend, his lawyer said.
The former television reporter will be involved with sales and
marketing, said his lawyer, Jeff Pine.
Pine would not name Derderian's new employer, but said it's in Rhode
Island and "not in any way related to the media."
Derderian, 36, resigned in June from WPRI-TV, a CBS affiliate in East
Providence. He started there only days before the Feb. 20 fire ripped
through the West Warwick nightclub he owned with his brother, Michael.
Jeffrey Derderian had been getting paid from WPRI until his resignation,
but had not worked since the blaze, which started when a band's
pyrotechnics set fire to foam that had been placed around the stage as
soundproofing.
Pine said Derderian started working first as a volunteer for his
friend's company and will soon be on the payroll.
"He needs to earn a living for his family," Pine said.
Before coming to WPRI, Derderian was a longtime reporter in Rhode Island
and then worked at WHDH-TV in Boston, an NBC affiliate, from September
1997 until this January.
The Derderians bought The Station nightclub in March 2000. They were in
the process of selling the club when it burned down in February. Four
employees were among those who died in the fire -- the worst in the
state's history.
The Derderians are appealing a $1.06 million workers' compensation
penalty for lack of workers' comp insurance levied against their
business in the wake of the fire.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has also fined
the company that owns The Station, Derco LLC, $85,200 for alleged
violations of workplace safety laws. A conference on the OSHA fines has
been scheduled for Sept. 5.
