Recovery of fire victims winds down; investigation looms

Recovery of fire victims winds down; investigation looms

(AP) — Some people managed to text loved ones goodbye and "I love you" before they died in an Oakland warehouse fire that claimed three dozen lives, officials said, as heart-rending reports of victims' last moments emerged from the most lethal building fire in the U.S. in more than a decade.

The district attorney warned of possible murder charges as she determines whether there were any crimes linked to the blaze.

The cluttered warehouse had been converted to artists' studios and illegal living spaces, and former denizens said it was a death trap of piled wood, furniture, snaking electrical cords and only two exits.

Oakland city councilman Noel Gallo, who lives a block from the warehouse, said he confronted the property's manager — Derick Ion Almena — several times about neighbors' concerns about trash in the street and in front of the warehouse.

Gallo said Almena essentially told authorities to "mind their own business" and appeared resistant to addressing complaints and complying with city codes.

Almena told San Jose television station KNTV he didn't know the event was taking place, and he wasn't at the warehouse Friday night because he and his wife had decided to stay at a hotel because he was exhausted and their children had school.

Almena says he lived in the warehouse with his family and other residents, and shrugged off the idea that he tried to make a profit at the expense of safety.

Investigators said they believe they have located the section of the building where the fire started, but the cause remains unknown.