owner had installed fire alarms in the building, but they had been disabled weeks prior to the fire due to regular malfunctioning. It was also mentioned that batteries for the stand-alone alarms were sometimes removed by customers for portable cameras or music players. A survivor told reporters he read the fire notes on the wall, which showed the best escape route, but could barely make it 10 metres to a balcony. When it was announced that the coroner had decided not to lay criminal charges for negligence against the owner and operators of the hostel, families of seven victims vowed to launch a class action suit against the previously mentioned individuals. Memorials A picnic bench in front of the building became a shrine to the deceased, with flowers, notes, and fruit from the local farms; 20 of the survivors held an impromptu memorial service with a local Roman Catholic priest at the shrine. Australian country singer and songwriter Darren Coggan, who was touring nearby, composed a dedication song, Spirit of the Free, shortly after visiting the town a week after the fire. After the fire, several ideas for the building were proposed. Trevor negotiated to rebuild the Palace in its rebuilt 1903 style as a memorial for those affected by the fire after plans to purchase the Isis Cultural Centre fell through. Trevor travelled to the UK and the Netherlands in October 2001 to consult the bereaved families about the memorial proposals. The council then approved a new hostel for the rear of the lot and negotiated to purchase half the street-side ground floor and the entire first floor for the project. The building now includes “a glass memorial wall; a portrait of the victims of the fire; the Childers Regional Art Gallery and the Childers Visitor Information Centre”. Queensland artist Sam Di Mauro made a 7.7 metre (25 foot) 1.5 tonne glass memorial wall that was lowered through the roof into the new building. The $60,000 piece of glass from Japan was purchased in Perth, sandblasted in Sydney, and trucked to the site. It contains 15 light boxes showing representative images, selected by each family, of the lives of each victim. Sydney artist Josonia Palaitis was selected to paint a portrait of those killed. She said it was "the most technically challenging and emotionally charged portrait I've ever undertaken". The artist's greatest challenge was to suitably portray the youngsters