Sparks seen 'coming from ceiling' of Stardust in weeks before fatal fire, say witnesses

Member of Elvis Presley tribute band that played in the nightclub the week before the fire said he saw a 'shower of sparks' coming from the ceiling at the backstage area

The fire at the Stardust nightclub killed 48 people on February 14, 1981. Picture: Tony Harris/PA Wire

Sparks were seen coming from the ceiling of the Stardust nightclub during concerts up to a month before the blaze, an inquest has heard, with one witness describing it as being like something out of “a disaster movie”.

The jury at the Dublin District Coroner’s Court in the Pillar Room of the Rotunda Hospital yesterday heard evidence from two witnesses who said they saw sparks coming down from the ceiling during live music concerts in the weeks before the fire that killed 48 people when it swept through the Stardust in the early hours of February 14, 1981.