Digital Extra: The Station Fire

03:27 PM EST on Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Staff report

PROVIDENCE -- State officials will honor people affected by The Station nightclub fire on Thursday night with a wreath-laying ceremony in the State House rotunda.

The service, which starts at 6 p.m., is among events commemorating the two-year anniversary of the disastrous blaze at The Station in West Warwick, which killed 100 people and injured about 200.

The Rev. John Holt of the Rhode Island State Council of Churches will conduct a reading during the brief ceremony.

Senate President Joseph Montalbano and House Speaker William Murphy will present Governor Carcieri with the wreath, which will remain in the rotunda for one week. Victims' families, fire survivors and their families, first responders, and the public are invited to attend.

On Sunday at 4:30 p.m., the Station Fire Memorial Foundation will hold a memorial service at the site of the fire on Cowesett Avenue in West Warwick. The service is expected to last about an hour. The governor has been invited to address the crowd.

Only limited handicapped parking will be available at the site. Free parking will be available at the lower lot of the West Warwick Civic Center on Factory Street. Pawtuxet Valley buses will provide transportation to and from the site, starting at 3:30 p.m. The last bus will leave at 7 p.m.

The nonprofit foundation is working to ensure that The Station site is preserved with a permanent memorial.