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Crosses Removed To Make Way For Permanent RI Nightclub Fire Memorial

WEST WARWICK, R.I. (AP) — Crosses and other items are being removed at the site of a 2003 Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 100 people, as the group working to build a permanent memorial clears the land so work can begin.

Members of the Station Fire Memorial Foundation are working Saturday to carefully remove the handmade crosses, photographs, stuffed animals and other items that have been there for the decade since the Feb. 20, 2003, fire in West Warwick.

The items will be placed into a vault and become part of the permanent memorial, estimated to be completed next year.

The site closed to the public Wednesday.

The foundation hopes to raise more than $1 million to build the memorial and maintain it.

The fire was started by pyrotechnics for the band Great White. The victims included people from Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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