April 23, 1940 – Natchez, Mississippi – About 200 people die in a fire at the Rhythm nightclub. Boarded up windows, flammable decorations and overcrowding play a factor in the high number of deaths.
November 28, 1942 – Boston, Massachusetts – 492 people die in a fire at the Cocoanut Grove nightclub after a lit match sets an artificial palm tree on fire. This is the deadliest nightclub fire in United States history, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
November 1, 1970 – Saint-Laurent-du-Pont, France – 144 people are killed in the Club Cinq-Sept (Club 5-7) when emergency exits are blocked and a discarded match starts a fire.
May 28, 1977 – Southgate, Kentucky – 165 are killed and another 70 injured in a fire at the Beverly Hills Supper Club.
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January 9, 2009 – Court-appointed Special Master Francis McGovern submits a plan to the court on how to divide a proposed $176 million settlement. The money will be divided between 300 plaintiffs. It will also be divided proportionally based on the severity of injuries and suffering, similar to the way the September 11th victims’ compensation fund was apportioned.
June 2009 – Michael Derderian is released from prison, after serving less than three years.
January 7, 2010 – U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Lagueux approves settlements for the more than 300 victims of the fire. $176 million will be distributed, with $59 million going to lawyers.
September 28, 2012 – A lawyer for Ray Villanova, the owner of the site of the nightclub fire, files papers that transfer the land to the Station Fire Memorial Foundation.
