A building with no sprinklers, no smoke alarms, and no permits for residential living became a death trap for those trying to escape the blinding smoke and billowing flames Friday.
The grim search for victims is far from over as firefighters continue to sift through the ashes of a charred shell of a converted warehouse in Oakland.
“This was a completely predictable event,” said Spokane Fire Assistant Chief, Brian Schaeffer. “And it’s incredibly unfortunate that we have firefighters in that building right now looking for body parts.”
Schaeffer says his heart goes out to those who lost loved ones to the blaze, and the Oakland firefighters who remain on scene.