An emotional gathering took place Friday night outside the former location of Chicago's E2 nightclub - the site of tragedy 20 years ago this President's Day weekend.
Despite the chilly temperatures, families and friends of the victims came out to mourn and remember those who never made it home. Just after the victims' names were read off one by one, 21 seconds of silence - one for each of the 21 people who lost their lives.
"Tragedies like this can never be forgotten," one attendee said.
Some brought balloons, while others wore shirts bearing pictures of the loved ones they lost.
"[It's] still tearing me apart," said one grieving relative. "[It] doesn't seem like 20 years, seems like yesterday. Miss her so much."
Disaster struck in the early morning hours of Feb. 17, 2003 - on what was supposed to be an exciting night out during a three-day weekend. The scene dramatically changed when a security guard used pepper spray to break up a fight on the second floor, sending hundreds of frantic clubgoers into a stairwell, leading to a stampede. While 21 people lost their lives that night, countless other lives were changed.
Even though two decades have passed, many families will never forget the pain - and the night that changed everything as they knew it.
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"It just doesn't get better," one attendee said. "Always say you love your people because you never know."
The nightclub's owners were acquitted of involuntary manslaughter charges, but convicted of criminal contempt for failing to close the second floor. Most wrongful death lawsuits were eventually settled.
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