Death Toll Rises in Oakland Warehouse Party Fire

On Friday night, a deadly fire broke out at a party at a warehouse in Oakland. Officials announced this morning that the death toll has risen to 33, The New York Times reports. Many more people are still unaccounted for, as rescue workers continued to search through the rubble of the destroyed building. City officials have also announced a criminal investigation has been opened. Yesterday, the official death toll was nine. 

The fire was called “one of the deadliest structure fires in the United States in the last decade” by The New York Times. So far “about 20 percent of the building” has been searched, according to the Times. “We will be here for days and days to come,” Sergeant Ray Kelly of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office was quoted as saying.

Kelly told the Los Angeles Times that “the vast majority of the victims found have not been identified.” They also report that “the fire’s cause is not known.” The warehouse, known as the Ghost Ship, held many artists’ studios, and was also a performance space. The party on Friday night involved sets by musicians from the Los Angeles-based electronic label 100% Silk. 

Update (12/4/16 6:31 p.m. EST): The death toll has risen from 24 to 33 according to a recent update from The New York Times. 

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