CA - Massive fire at Oakland warehouse party, 36 dead, 2 Dec 2016 #2

[La Louve]

DIA's FB page is no longer available, but I read it extensively, and was surprised to read a stream of consciousness rant against Burning Man. Apparently he had decided that it had sold out and become corporate, betraying its values. I'm paraphrasing, but he was REALLY ANGRY!!...as usual...and scornful. I wondered if he had gotten himself kicked out for some reason. But I also thought that he was probably trying to prove himself to be more counter-culture/alternative, more creative and more enlightened than any of the supposedly deluded peons participating in Burning Man. He is truly a piece of work.

I don't know what his history with the festival is but from what I have read of how he treated his "tenants" in the building he was in it for the money and ego-gratification. He may have likely found that Black Rock City didn't afford him the opportunity to take advantage of people to the same extent. Or that people didn't buy his B.S. Or if he tried to set up a theme camp he ran afoul of the rules and regs (yes, even Burning Man has rules, and requires adherence to State and Local laws when it comes to housing and feeding large numbers of people.). And he seems to have been rather controlling of the artists involved with Ghostship. That's pretty much the antithesis of the Burning Man philosophy.

 

[human]

Billionaires and Burning Man. http://www.vox.com/2014/8/22/6050625/why-silicon-valley-billionaires-are-obsessed-with-burning-man

I live in a Third World nation that is a vacation spot for very wealthy people. There have been several people here from Google so that is why I know of their participation in Burning Man. Perhaps this is what upset Derrick who I think is a narcissist to the max.

 

[Spellbound]

Not sure if this has been posted. 32 page documents of previous complaints at Ghost Ship warehouse.

http://www2.oaklandnet.com/oakca1/gr.../oak061791.pdf

All but one complaint seems to be outside ... trash and graffiti. No inspections of inside?

but this was very interesting:

Pg. 4, 11/13/16. Complaint:
a ton of garbage piling up on the property and spilling over onto the sidewalk. The property is a storage, but owner turned it into a recycle. The main building was remodeled for residential. (Paraphrased) Reinspection deadline 1/16/2017

Certified letter sent to owner, Ng, 11/21/16, nothing said about tenants!

There are all kinds of rules re getting notices from the govt. For instance, the letter has to be sent x amount of days from when the complaint is made, tThen the owner has so many dsys to respond. Then the govt says how many days to fix the issue. Etc etc etc.

Private property has a lot of rights and people throw fits about interference all of the time. If the owner is cooperating, then the city will work with the owner.

I understand that it takes time for all the legalities of notices, contacts, etc. however, what struck me about the last complaint is that it also mentioned tenants in the warehouse ---- yet in the certified contact to the owner, she was not informed of that. I believe a landlord/owner is not allowed to enter rental properties without consent (correct me if I am wrong) ... in all the complaints about trash/graffiti, I see none that say the owner was ever informed about tenants. But the inspectors were aware via at least one complaint ---

I am somewhat less angry at the owner IF she was never informed of tenants, if she truly could not prove there were tenants, if the inspection reports never mentioned tenants.

 

[KaaBoom]

I understand that it takes time for all the legalities of notices, contacts, etc. however, what struck me about the last complaint is that it also mentioned tenants in the warehouse ---- yet in the certified contact to the owner, she was not informed of that. I believe a landlord/owner is not allowed to enter rental properties without consent (correct me if I am wrong) ... in all the complaints about trash/graffiti, I see none that say the owner was ever informed about tenants. But the inspectors were aware via at least one complaint ---

I am somewhat less angry at the owner IF she was never informed of tenants, if she truly could not prove there were tenants, if the inspection reports never mentioned tenants.

The city didn't care about the tenants in the warehouse. People are living in warehouses all over the Bay Area. They only cared about the trash outside. The City of Oakland has a major emphasis on trying to clean up outdoor trash, to keep the city from becoming one big trash dump. They don't even have much success with that. That's about all they can handle. People living in warehouses is the least of their concerns.

[video=youtube;8gFtpfe_1tU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gFtpfe_1tU[/video]

 

[Ian]

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigating the scene discounted the refrigerator as the source, but said they were looking at a number of electrical appliances, circuits and wiring in the building.[SUP][1

Lawsuits against property owners have produced huge verdicts — and often years of efforts to recover the money. In some cases, criminal charges have been filed, with mixed results.

Some Bay Area lawyers said they already have been contacted to represent people in cases stemming from the fire.
Wrongful-death lawsuits could name the property owner and the man who leased the building and allegedly sublet it to others, lawyers said.

anycontractors,[/SUP][SUP]engineers[/SUP][SUP] and architects who worked on the site over the years; the city of Oakland; promoters of the musical event held the night of the fire and possibly even manufacturers of items inside the building that may have sparked or contributed to the blaze.

He tried a case against the owner of the apartment building where a deck, infested with dry rot, collapsed. One person was killed and more than a dozen injured. McCarthy said lawsuits recovered more than $12 million.


a criminal probe into the deck collapse was launched. San Francisco prosecutors charged the landlord with involuntary manslaughter.
A jury deadlocked on the felony charge, and the landlord instead was convicted of misdemeanor code violations.

“Lawyers have probably already gone on Zillow to look up the owner’s properties,

landlords have a legal duty “to act reasonably and can’t just turn a blind eye to what is going on with their property,”

You have a responsibility to know how your property is being used,

potential[/SUP][SUP] deep pocket would be the city of Oakland, which probably would assert governmental immunity.

Oakland city clerk said information about any work done on the burned warehouse might not be available for 10 days.

Manslaughter does not require malice or intent. It is “basically creating an inherently dangerous situation,


prosecutors would be “hard pressed” to prove a building owner had implied malice unless there was a history of similar problems causing harm.
Involuntary manslaughter charges are more likely

it is “very realistic” that someone will be charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter
[/SUP]
Micah Allison wrote that the building was a “beautiful temple” that was “held together with love and blood.” The post was designed to get friends to donate money to the couple in order to help them pay the rent. In herAbout section, Allison refers to herself as the “Mother Superior” of the warehouse.

A week later, Allison posted that the water was off in their building and that she needed a friend to let them use their bathtub so she could bathe the couple’s three children.

Ion wrote on Facebook in May 2015 that he had been “unable to see the kids for one month as we have been working and looking for the right lawyer as well as fighting extreme depression and an overwhelming longing for our children

Ion says he’s from Los Angeles and that he’s been married to Allison since 2007. He puts his favorite quote as, “Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.”

http://www.latimes.com/local/califor...205-story.html

http://heavy.com/news/2016/12/derick-ion-micah-allison-facebook-post-ghost-ship-fire/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Oakland_warehouse_fire

known as both Derick Almena and Derick Alemany[SUP]

[/SUP]

One account from a neighbor (I will try and find the link and source (and they could be wrong)) said that there had been a small fire burning outside the Ghost Ship near one corner and they thought little of it, but about 5 minutes later the entire building was ablaze.

 

[Spellbound]

A bit about Jennifer Mendiola:

[h=1]victim Jennifer Mendiola: Doctorate, dancing and a ‘little goth flair’[/h]http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Fire-victim-Jennifer-Mendiola-Doctorate-dancing-10781979.php


sending out special hugs to Gitana and her brother. This has to be so hard, and even more so at what should be a happy time of year. I am just so very sorry ....

 

[mom2four717]

Derick operated a cash only (illegal) business. I suspect his pirate's booty went up in flames.

I dont wish hardship on anyone but this gives me a small measure of satisfaction.

 

[Jax49]

After looking around a bit more I think I have the addresses straight.

1305 31st Ave is the vacant lot.

1315 31st Ave in the warehouse.

1309 31st Ave is the auto shop.

MOO

Earlier today I posted a link regarding 1305 31st avenue. The warehouse is actually at 1315 31st Avenue.http://www.eppraisal.com/home-values/property/1315-31st-ave-oakland-ca-94601-a422500286/

Please accept my sincere apologies for the misinformation.

Weird isn't it? The press used 1305 as the warehouse address and to add to the confusion, the building to the right of the warehouse is physically marked 1309.

After your post I did some research and now I wonder if the confusion about the addresses contributed to the problem of inspectors not finding the illegal building inside. MOO

 

[passionflower]

snipped.........Allison refers to herself as the “Mother Superior” of the warehouse. this tells me she is as liable as DIA. Those poor children. Were they the only kids in the warehouse? other playmates? school? Very bad parenting. MOO

 

[Jax49]

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/nation-world/national/article119626563.html#storylink=cpy

I found this very interesting from your link. Tks for posting.

Fire department spokeswoman Rebecca Kozak said Thursday she didn't know whether the warehouse's address was in the database of buildings to be checked.Kozak said she was processing 40 to 50 public records request from news media and that confusion over the warehouse's address is slowing the process.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/nation-world/national/article119626563.html#storylink=cpy

BBM. Seems we're not the only ones confused about the address.

 

[flourish]

Please move on from the discussion of whether or not the victims should have / could have moved.

If you wish to discuss the housing crisis in relation to the case, that is fine, but discussing that they could have moved elsewhere is insensitive and borders on victim blaming.

:bump:

 

[CARIIS]

Speaking of "Documentation Gone Wild"

The older of the two ladies that have intense issues with him , claimed three police reports filed two have gone "missing", I am not quite sure if I find her credible but supposeddly they are getting her one report.

Or it takes 10 days.

It will be intersting to see how much of everything she has been verbilzing (all over the place!) is accurate.

 

[cvaldez1975]

Where I live if you make less than 100k you are scraping by.

Median is middle. So the median means that many make more than $75,000 a year. A beginning teacher in MN where I was frim makes $35,000 a year. So making $50,000 a year is darn good in my eyes.

And my comment was that there are many people in Burning Man who have the money and contacts to get something going on making safe places for artists.

As a former art teacher until art was eliminated as a frill in the schools, most people are too busy trying to survive to be interested in art and artist's lives.

I feel it will be up to people of money, interest, and drive to work on this issue

 

[vulture]

sending out special hugs to Gitana and her brother. This has to be so hard, and even more so at what should be a happy time of year. I am just so very sorry ....

It is very hard to lose someone at this time of year, I know that from experience. There is no good time to lose someone you love but when you feel under pressure to feel happy it's really tough!

I have a suggestion to make, obviously this horrible event has moved a lot of people. It occurred to me that some of the residents or visitors to the studios could have been mental health consumers. Apparently there were LGBT (do I have that acronym right) community members who felt comfortable there. I had a lot of group therapy last summer because I had trauma from emotional abuse. My trauma was not because I am a member of that specific community but there were some in my group who had trauma as a result or compounded by issues that resulted from being a member of that community. There were also rape victims, substance abuse sufferers, families of murder victims, eating disorder sufferers, mental illness sufferers and others. A high percentage of people in the group had creative interests including myself. When I was released from my treatment I sought help for transitioning back to normal life at this studio that is for people with disabilities which includes mental illness - http://www.artistsfirststl.org/

Artwork is therapeutic and I had just lost my studio right around the same time I suffered the emotional abuse so this place did/is helping me. My illness was more situational, I'm still recovering but I can function almost normally now when it comes to work and stuff. When I was feeling able I started volunteering there. I volunteered at a similar studio in the late 90s/early 2000's for about 5 years. This place does not provide residence but it does provide studio time and supplies to people who need them. It helps with all kinds of recovery, mental and physical. If you want to help the Oakland fire victims then I think it's a good idea to donate to a fund for them that you know is reputable, and if you would like to help other creative people who are also mental health consumers donating to a studio like this in your city in memory of the fire victims would be a very good cause. Donating to a similar studio in the memory of or in honor of anyone who has suffered abuse or mental illness would also be a great way to reduce the amount of suffering in the world and help people recover from all kinds of trauma.

The portion of my mental health bills from last summer that insurance did not pay was around $4,000. I am fortunate that I have the means to pay the bill but there are other mental health consumers who do not have the means. Since I have the means I pay $5 an hour to use the studio if I want to use it as a client and not a volunteer. There are subsidies for those who don't have the means that come from donations and fundraisers. Since I had to downsize my studio I also donated a vanload of supplies since I couldn't keep all of my supplies. I feel good about that, it helped ease the pain of losing my studio. I know they are doing a lot of good. Once when I came to the studio one of the health care workers who was there with her client was wearing a necklace her client made for her which included beads that I donated. I know they both got enjoyment and healing out of that. Caretaking is a tough job! At the old studio where I volunteered years ago a client told me my class was the only reason she got out of bed that day. Both the givers and receivers of volunteer time and resources experience healing in places like this. Supporting them any way you can is a good cause and a good way to help and honor creative people.

I am also praying for the fire victims and their families, the people I was in treatment with, and all abuse and mental illness victims as I do my Advent prayers. I wish for peace and healing to all. I know it can be a long road to get there sometimes. I was humbled by what others in my group therapy had suffered.

 

[LaborOfLobe]

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigating the scene discounted the refrigerator as the source, but said they were looking at a number of electrical appliances, circuits and wiring in the building.[SUP][1

Lawsuits against property owners have produced huge verdicts — and often years of efforts to recover the money. In some cases, criminal charges have been filed, with mixed results.

Some Bay Area lawyers said they already have been contacted to represent people in cases stemming from the fire.
Wrongful-death lawsuits could name the property owner and the man who leased the building and allegedly sublet it to others, lawyers said.

anycontractors,[/SUP][SUP]engineers[/SUP][SUP] and architects who worked on the site over the years; the city of Oakland; promoters of the musical event held the night of the fire and possibly even manufacturers of items inside the building that may have sparked or contributed to the blaze.

He tried a case against the owner of the apartment building where a deck, infested with dry rot, collapsed. One person was killed and more than a dozen injured. McCarthy said lawsuits recovered more than $12 million.


a criminal probe into the deck collapse was launched. San Francisco prosecutors charged the landlord with involuntary manslaughter.
A jury deadlocked on the felony charge, and the landlord instead was convicted of misdemeanor code violations.

“Lawyers have probably already gone on Zillow to look up the owner’s properties,

landlords have a legal duty “to act reasonably and can’t just turn a blind eye to what is going on with their property,”

You have a responsibility to know how your property is being used,

potential[/SUP][SUP] deep pocket would be the city of Oakland, which probably would assert governmental immunity.

Oakland city clerk said information about any work done on the burned warehouse might not be available for 10 days.

Manslaughter does not require malice or intent. It is “basically creating an inherently dangerous situation,


prosecutors would be “hard pressed” to prove a building owner had implied malice unless there was a history of similar problems causing harm.
Involuntary manslaughter charges are more likely

it is “very realistic” that someone will be charged with 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter
[/SUP]
Micah Allison wrote that the building was a “beautiful temple” that was “held together with love and blood.” The post was designed to get friends to donate money to the couple in order to help them pay the rent. In herAbout section, Allison refers to herself as the “Mother Superior” of the warehouse.

A week later, Allison posted that the water was off in their building and that she needed a friend to let them use their bathtub so she could bathe the couple’s three children.

Ion wrote on Facebook in May 2015 that he had been “unable to see the kids for one month as we have been working and looking for the right lawyer as well as fighting extreme depression and an overwhelming longing for our children

Ion says he’s from Los Angeles and that he’s been married to Allison since 2007. He puts his favorite quote as, “Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.”

http://www.latimes.com/local/califor...205-story.html

http://heavy.com/news/2016/12/derick-ion-micah-allison-facebook-post-ghost-ship-fire/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Oakland_warehouse_fire

known as both Derick Almena and Derick Alemany[SUP]

[/SUP]

BBM. The more I read, the more I detest this wackadoodle. So many things I'd love to say about his favorite quote here, but I'll refrain. I would love to be a fly on the wall wherever he is right now...

 

[vulture]

Wow, I was dating one of these Injustice Collectors apparently. He was the source of the emotional abuse I needed treatment for. Yikes. I'm going to learn a lot from this list about what to look out for if there is a next time!

 

[skibaboo]

Our beautiful Jennifer has been identified. She died without suffering. She was unconscious in 15 minutes and was not touched by the fire. She died of smoke inhalation.

Thank you all for your incredible support. And love. And assistance. And a special thanks to Tricia and Linask who kept my confidences and communicated for me. A special thanks to Linask who drove over two hours round trip to pick me up and taken me to the Family Assistance Center and who saw things there that were incredibly difficult for her to see and who used such discretion in protecting the privacy of the families and officials she saw and spoke to and whose intense pain she witnessed. I know it shook her. But she was there for me.
You are all my cyber family.

I'm so sorry gitana :heartbeat: :hug: and LinasK :hug: thank you for being so amazing.


Rest easy Jennifer :rose:

 

[rsd1200]

Where I live if you make less than 100k you are scraping by.

Around here, if you make around $50k per year, you can live pretty well. One thing though, I think a lot of the residents were able to escape. It was mostly the people who were there for the concert on the 2nd floor that night, who lost their lives. They hold events like that around here in all kinds of places too. One of my kids is into underground music, a bit different than what was played at the ghost ship, but, still not mainstream. I've gone to a couple of his shows (I love music, but it's just not one of the genres for me, so I just can't go often. My ears are nearly bleeding by the time it is my kid's turn to take the stage.) I've been concerned about him b/c of the type of places he goes to, and the festival type non-seating venues. Everyone just crams in, and there's no marked Exits, or only one exit, and at one they were cooking food. He flew to Cali not long ago to do one and they were supposed to have a place for them to sleep. Nope. They had to sleep in cars of the people who drove there, or in the venue. This particular venue was away from any nearby motels, and being 2,000 miles from home, there wasn't much choice. They go to see shows and it's much the same.

 

[human]

Since there are probably going to be lawsuits against Oakland, I cannot see how the city can allow these illegal warehouse spaces. Before the city could perhaps claim ignorance. That is no longer an option.

How is this all going to be handled? I cannot imagine an answer that is immediate.

I hope that the people of means who benefit from the works of different artists will address this problem for long term solutions.

There are cities all over America where there are options for artists.

Perhaps artists who have made it can have fundraisers such as having concerts.

 

[Jax49]

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigating the scene discounted the refrigerator as the source, but said they were looking at a number of electrical appliances, circuits and wiring in the building.[SUP][1

[/SUP]

RSBM

Help. I'm confused. I can't find a source that says the refrigerator has been discounted.