Three victims of the February 20 Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 99 people have filed the first federal lawsuit over the tragedy. Two survivors, Tammy Passa, 24, and Walter Castle Jr., 29, along with Cheryl Harris-Rossi, whose husband died in the blaze, filed the 61-page suit Tuesday.
Defendants named in the complaint include the state of Rhode Island, the state fire marshal, club owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, American Foam Corp., which sold a highly flammable foam insulation to the club, and the town of West Warwick. According to the plaintiffs' attorney, the lawsuit may seek more than $3 million in damages.
Evidence has been mounting against the club's owners for several weeks. Inspectors investigating the fire discovered a document earlier this month that suggests the Derderian brothers lied about the location's maximum capacity, inflating the figure by more than 100 people.