AUGUSTA – As the state Fire Marshal’s Office wrapped up its investigation Thursday, Maine investigators said the rock band Great White could face charges in connection with the illegal use of indoor fireworks at a Bangor nightclub Feb. 18.

The show in question took place two nights before the band’s catastrophic performance in West Warwick, R.I., where a fire started by the show’s fireworks claimed the lives of 96 people. Reacting to the tragedy, a moratorium on the issuance of permits for indoor pyrotechnic displays has been in effect in Maine since Saturday.

State Fire Marshal John Dean said Thursday that both the band and the owner of the Bangor nightspot could be prosecuted pending a review of the investigators’ reports by the Penobscot County District Attorney’s Office.

“It’ll be the district attorney’s decision,” Dean said.

Dean said his investigators still had a few interviews to conclude before forwarding their findings to the district attorney. While declining to elaborate on details, the fire marshal said it was clear the band had used “stage gerbs” (pronounced “jerbs”) similar to those believed to have triggered the fire in Rhode Island. The investigator said three of the spent pyrotechnic devices were recovered from Russell’s, a Bangor club owned by Alex Gray.

A permit from the Bangor Fire Department would have been required for the fireworks, which Dean said were designed for use in rooms with a minimum ceiling height of 15 feet. Investigators said the pyrotechnics had been placed on a 30-inch raised platform in an area where the ceiling was only 10 feet high.

“So you can see we’re down to about 7 feet,” Dean said. “There’s no question that the devices were impinging on the ceiling when they were fired off. Fortunately, the ceiling had fire-retardant ceiling tiles and the building has an operational sprinkler system.”

Prior to the band’s performance in Bangor, state inspectors visited Russell’s because of concerns that the building’s capacity could be exceeded by large numbers of concert-goers. The investigators asked at that time whether pyrotechnics would be used and were informed by club employees there would be no fireworks. The owner of the Bangor club maintains that permission for the pyrotechnics was neither sought nor granted. Gray said he had no prior knowledge of the band’s plans to use the devices.

“There’s no question that someone was responsible for getting the permit,” Dean said. “Three things went on in Bangor: There was no licensed technician. There was no permit for the show, and the devices would not have been allowed anyway because they were not rated for that type of building.”

Gov. John E. Baldacci said Thursday he would expedite legislation to upgrade the kind of permit violation that took place in Bangor from its current misdemeanor status to a felony. Penalties for violators could include fines of up to $5,000 and five years imprisonment.

“Our laws are ahead of most other states,” said Baldacci, a Bangor native. “Raising the penalties for the offense will let people know we’re going to reinforce those procedures to provide further safety and protection in Maine.”

Joined by newly sworn-in Maine Public Safety Commissioner Michael Cantara, Baldacci said the moratorium on the use of pyrotechnics would be lifted after emergency rule-making procedures could provide new public safety regulations governing fireworks, including the following:

. Improving sprinkler-system requirements to ensure that the use of pyrotechnics will only be allowed in buildings that are completely protected by a fire sprinkler system.

. Enhancing safety procedures to ensure it will be the responsibility for facility management to provide, by way of public announcement, the policy of no smoking or open flame use, the location of exits, and procedures for emergency evacuation. The state will also consider the feasibility of having State Fire Marshal Office personnel monitor pyrotechnic displays at Maine’s larger venues.

. Beefing up criminal penalties for failing to obtain a fireworks permit from the current Class D designation to a Class C crime and reclassifying the charge for an individual conducting a fireworks display in violation of permit requirements from a Class E to a Class D crime.

“I feel strongly that we want to maintain this moratorium until those measures are put in place,” Baldacci said.