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Death toll from Oakland warehouse fire rises to 24, officials say

Twenty-four bodies have been discovered in the ruins of the artist space dubbed the Oakland Ghost Ship, which burnt down on Friday night, the authorities said.

The death toll spiked from nine to 24 as the search continued overnight, Alameda County Sheriff’s Sargent Ray Kelly said on Sunday, warning that more bodies are likely to be discovered. 

Investigators at the site are still trying to determine cause of the deadly fire, Kelly said, adding that arson isn’t suspected and the warehouse isn’t currently being viewed as a crime scene.

Eighty percent of the building has yet to be searched, Melinda Drayton, battalion chief at the Oakland Fire Department, said.

The search will be a “long and arduous process,” as the firefighters have been going through the debris, “bucket by bucket,”she said.

“It was quiet; it was heartbreaking,” Drayton added.

People are still reporting missing relatives and friends who were among the crowd at the ill-fated show.

The blaze broke out in a converted warehouse on 31st Ave in Oakland during a party advertised as a ‘Rave Cave,’ which was part of musician Golden Donna’s West Coast tour.

The fire raged for several hours, requiring over 50 firefighters to douse.

There have been reports that the building had no sprinkler system, and it appears that no smoke detectors went off during the blaze.

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