PROVIDENCE -- A woman who lost her daughter in The Station nightclub
fire took responsibility today for pulling crosses dedicated to Great
White guitarist Ty Longley from the site of the blaze.
Diane Mattera, of Warwick, said she took Longley's crosses down because
his band set off the pyrotechnics that sparked the Feb. 20 blaze, which
killed 100 people including Longley and Mattera's daughter, Tammy
Mattera-Housa.
"I was told that he had a cross put up and where it was, and I was very
upset ... so I went there to see," Mattera told The Associated Press.
"Once I saw it, that they made his so different than the rest of the
crosses, like he was better than the other victims, like he deserved
more respect than the other people. ... I said, no, this can't be."
So, on Friday afternoon, she picked up two crosses and threw them in the
woods nearby. She said she left a note behind that accuses Longley of
being a "killer."
West Warwick police were investigating but would not comment after
Mattera publicly took responsibility for the incident on WPRO radio this
afternoon.
Mattera told The Associated Press she had not been contacted by the
police.
One of the original crosses for Longley was made by his father and his
girlfriend. Attached to it were pictures of Longley's son, Acey, who was
born this summer. The other cross was made by The Station Family Fund,
which was set up to help the victims.
Mattera said the crosses were different from the others because they
were painted.
Jody King, an official with The Station Family Fund, and a friend have
already made a replacement cross for Longley. The new memorial is in the
shape of a guitar, with a bar intersecting the guitar's neck to complete
the cross shape. It was placed in concrete, so it could not be removed.
A phone message left for King was not immediately returned today.
