At least nine people were dead and 13 others missing after a fire broke out during a party in a warehouse in Oakland, California, local media reported on Saturday, according to city fire officials.
At least nine confirmed dead so far in #Oakland fire. We have people at the scene, keep checking this link for updates. https://t.co/jsxJ7JRLSw
— Malaika Fraley (@malaikafraley) December 3, 2016
The building in the Fruitvale district housed units where people lived and worked, and it had no sprinkler system, Fire Chief Teresa Deloach-Reed told the East Bay Times newspaper.
#breaking: Greater alarm fire burning inside commercial building in #Oakland, California. Firefighters have taken a defensive mode. pic.twitter.com/GcssQ6dTvs
— Tim Jue (@timjue) December 3, 2016
31st- pic.twitter.com/8TX6jk0iYq
— Oakland Firefighters (@OaklandFireLive) December 3, 2016
The blaze broke out on 31st Ave in Oakland during a party advertised as a ‘Rave Cave’ as part of musician Golden Donna’s ‘100% Silk’ West Coast tour.
31st- pic.twitter.com/8TX6jk0iYq
— Oakland Firefighters (@OaklandFireLive) December 3, 2016
Fire Chief Teresa Deloche-Reed said that at least another 13 people are still unaccounted for after the deadly blaze started around 11:30pm in the 1300 block of 31st Avenue during an event advertised as ‘Rave Cave’ featuring musician Golden Donna’s 100% Silk West Coast tour. Officials said they were informed that between 30 and 70 patrons were at the event when the fire broke out, the East Bay Times reports.
#breaking: More video of commercial structure fire in Oakland, California. 3 alarms and counting. Mutual aid from City of Alameda arriving. pic.twitter.com/Gqw6EUjPjH
— Tim Jue (@timjue) December 3, 2016
‘We still have to do a more thorough search of the building and we don’t know the potential number of other victims,’ Deloche-Reed said.
An aggressive attack on the fire was underway when conditions suddenly changed and firefighters had to go back outside.
31st Ave: Fire through the roof, Command requests all units out of the building, going defensive. @KTVU @kron4news @CBSSF @abc7newsbayarea
— Oakland Firefighters (@OaklandFireLive) December 3, 2016
As of 4:20am PT, the fire was not officially under control, as smoke was still coming from an upper floor in the building, the Times reported.
31st Ave- crews will remain on scene for several more hours. 2 ladder pipes and hand lines still deployed extinguishing hot spots. #oakland
— Oakland Firefighters (@OaklandFireLive) December 3, 2016
Sabrina May Dolan told DailyMail.com that her sister, Chelsea Faith, was performing at the party under her stage name Cherushii when the fire started on the second floor of the building.
Dozens of people posted on the event’s Facebook page to say that they had safely escaped the fire, while others are inquiring about friends and relatives yet unaccounted for.
One, Eveline Darroch, wrote: “I am here with the fire inspector going through the list of missing names of missing/safe. At this point there are several threads. I am requesting that you only post in this thread their name and missing or safe next to it. Thank you.”
As RT notes, it’s not yet known how the fire started and it’s believed that an artists’ collective that lies adjacent to the warehouse was also engulfed in flames.
A Twitter account that posts about Oakland firefighters reported that the fire has gone through the roof and all units have been told to withdraw from the building. There has been no official update from the Oakland Fire Department, however.
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