Joseph Kinan is transferred from Massachusetts General Hospital to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital to continue his recovery.

07/24/2003

After 153 days, Joseph Kinan finally left the Massachusetts hospital where he had been a patient since the deadly fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick.

Kinan, 34, was released from Massachusetts General Hospital yesterday afternoon and transferred to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston, where he will continue to recover from his injuries, said his sister, Pam Kinan.

Kinan was one of nearly 200 people injured in The Station fire, and the last to be released from the hospital. He had been hospitalized since the Feb. 20 blaze, which killed 100 people.

Pam Kinan said last night that she was declining comment on her brother's behalf on the advice of his lawyer.

The Canton, Mass., resident suffered burns on his arms and over the upper half of his body. He lost his fingers and parts of his nose and ears in the fire.

He underwent more than 30 surgeries while he was hospitalized, and his lawyers have said his medical bills may top $4 million.

Kinan was in the hospital for more than two months before he was well enough to speak, and family members have described the early phase of his recovery as nerve-racking. He and Pamela Gruttadauria were two of the most seriously injured survivors treated at Mass General, and Gruttadauria died May 4.

At a benefit for Kinan last month, family friend Al Gersin said Kinan would need to learn to walk again after months in a hospital bed.

A lawsuit had been filed on behalf of Kinan, his companion Maureen Sullivan, and the couple's daughter, but Kinan's lawyers withdrew it for strategic reasons.

The lawyers said they plan to refile their lawsuit, but the decision to wait and gather more evidence will allow the plaintiffs to present a stronger case. The suit had named several defendants, including club owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, American Foam Corp., Anheuser-Busch, Inc., and members of the band Great White, whose pyrotechnics sparked the blaze.

Pam Kinan has said her brother attended the Great White concert with a friend who won tickets.

Joseph Kinan made it close to the front door, but his exit was blocked by other people.

With staff reports from Karen Lee Ziner