The Incident
First-In: Heroic Rescues
Death Toll Rises to 97
At Least 96 Dead in Inferno
Rescuers Struggle with Horror
Fire, Smoke Turns Club Into Hell
Discuss the Warwick Tragedy
The Aftermath
Victims Face Long Recovery
All But 4 Victims ID'd
Thousands Mourn Victims
IDs Could Take Days
Family, Friends Search
9/11 Widow Reflects
Survivors Recall Heroic Acts
The Investigation
Federal Team Launches Probe
Grand Jury Begins Probe
Brannigan: Inspectors Ready?
Investigation Ramps Up
Investigators Check Soundproof
Pyrotechnics Examined in Clubs
Disasters Prompt Inspections
Sprinklers Not Required
Nightclub Up to Code Before Fire
Town Withholds Records
RI Begins Inspections
No Warning of Pyro Use
Pyrotechnics Usually Safe
Atty: RI Club Rep. OK'd Pyrotech.
Fire Challenges State Atty. Gen.
IDs Weighed Heavy on Dentists
FEMA Denies Disaster Aid for Fire
Photos & Video
IBS Scene SlideShow
ABC: The Fire Starts
WJAR Video Feedroom
History of Tragedies
Carter: History Strikes Again
Fire, Life Safety Laws in Front
Tragedy Recalls Cocoanut Grove
Worst Club Tragedies
Nightclub Disasters Too Familiar
List: Worst Club Tragedies
Related Sites
West Warwick Fire Department
Warwick Fire Department
FH Network: Rhode Island
Providence Journal Coverage
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- Watching the tragedy of the nightclub fire unfold on his television, Dr. Robert Mier knew he'd be poring through his dental records the next day.
Teeth are the most fire-resistant part of the body, and the Warwick dentist feared some relatives and friends of his patients would be asking him for dental charts to identify their loved ones.
Within two days of the Feb. 20 fire, a woman was in Mier's office seeking records on two patients feared dead - her husband and his best friend since kindergarten. One of the men never missed a six-month checkup. The other was far less regular.
``These are people you see in the grocery store and talk to in the aisles,'' said Mier, whose office is only about a half-mile from the rubble of The Station, where 96 people perished in a fire last week started by a band's pyrotechnics.
``You start thinking of them more as friends than patients,'' he said.
Unable to identify most of the victims who burned to death with a first glance or fingerprints, medical examiners asked dentists to make sure they'd be able to turn over records.
Three hours after Gov. Don Carcieri's live television appearance Saturday asking dentists to get to their phones, 60 dental charts had been turned over to medical examiners, said Valerie Donnelly, executive director of the Rhode Island Dental Association.
By Thursday, all of the dead were identified - swift by any standards. But it took its toll on the dentists who lost their patients and the ones with the grim task of making the matches.
``This is the worst disaster I've seen in my 28 years of doing this,'' Puerini said. ``But you try to put the emotional aspect aside and get into a zone. But then you'll get a call from someone on the outside, and it makes it real for that moment. It hits you hard.''
For Mier, this is the third time in 14 years of practice that he's had to turn over dental records to help identify his patients. Two other patients died in plane crashes.
``It's very upsetting,'' Mier said. ``You're never going to see these people again, but their families still come to you.''
