Anheuser, beer distributor settle in deadly fire

BOSTON (Reuters) - Beer manufacturer Anheuser Busch Inc and a local distributor have agreed to pay $21 million to victims of a Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed more than 100 people, the latest in a string of settlements that total more than $120 million.

Court papers filed on Friday showed the St. Louis-based brewer of Budweiser and Bud Light agreed to pay $5 million, while its Rhode Island-based distributor, McLaughlin & Moran, would pay $16 million.

The companies did not admit wrongdoing but were named in the lawsuits because plaintiffs representing those killed and injured in one of the deadliest blazes in U.S. history said the two companies promoted the concert.

The blaze, sparked by fireworks that accompanied a show by the rock band Great White on February 20, 2003, at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, also injured more than 200 people.

The sparks spread to flammable, polyurethane foam on the club's walls that had been used for soundproofing. Nearly a third of the crowd at the heavy metal rock show were unable to exit the building.

The settlement, filed in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, must be approved by the judge.

The club's owners, brothers Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, have pleaded no contest to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter.

Michael Derderian is serving a four-year sentence. His brother served no jail time. Former Great White tour manager Daniel Biechele served 22 months in prison after pleading guilty to the same charges.

More than a dozen defendants remain.

(Reporting by Jason Szep)