Jeffrey Rader
DANVILLE, CALIF.
As flames from the pyrotechnic effects set off by Great White grew into a dangerous blaze, Jeff Rader would have known more quickly than most that something was wrong.
Rader, 32, had worked on the road crew for Great White and other metal bands, including Tesla, Poison, Ratt, Alice Cooper, and Ted Nugent.
"He was an intelligent guy to begin with, but he'd been to hundreds of these show and he would have known instantly that something was wrong," said Rader's best friend and business partner, Duane Serfass.
Friends say they can clearly see him in video shot in the club as the fire started, directing people to exits before most of the crowd realized anything was wrong.
"People who were outside the club said they saw him outside trying to find his girlfriend, and when he couldn't find her he went back in. No one saw him again," Serfass said.
Rader had been staying in West Warwick for a week visiting Becky Shaw, who also was killed in the blaze.
"He wanted to take her to the show and introduce her to the band," Serfass said.
CAROLINE KEOUGH
