Inside the Oakland artist warehouse that tragically burned down

Before the "Ghost Ship" became the a scene of a deadly fire in Oakland, California, the building was an artist workspace and a makeshift boarding house.

The 4,000-square-foot converted warehouse contained an elaborate maze of slapdash living quarters, artist studios, junk storage and an open space for late-night dance parties, like the one that drew up to 100 people on Dec. 2. 

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Big colorful rugs and well-worn sofas filled the rooms, while a vast collection of pianos, guitars, turntables, paintings and other objects you might find in an antique store lay scattered around the loft-like interior, according to pictures on Ghost Ship's website.

Image: Oaklandghostship.com

A rotating cast of a dozen or more tenants carved out living quarters among piles of driftwood and a network of electrical cords. The operators of the artist colony, Derick Ion Almena and Micah Allison, reportedly charged residents enough to cover the warehouse rent, pay their own living expenses and fund parties.

Since the building was zoned as a warehouse, not residential space, the illegal tenants were instructed to tell visitors it was a 24-hour artist workspace, according to former residents.

The concrete structure could be dark and freezing inside, as electricity was stolen from neighbors and often didn't work, residents said. Ghost Ship also didn't have running water, and neighbors complained of trash piling up outside.

But for all its quirks, the building was foremost a quarter-block-long fire hazard.

To reach the makeshift second floor, where Friday's concert was held, visitors had to walk up a stairway made partially of shipping pallets. Another staircase led to a boarded up door.

"If you were not familiar with the building and the way that it was, if you were going there for a party, you wouldn't be aware of the maze that you have to go through to get out," Danielle Boudreaux, a former friend of the couple who ran the warehouse, told the Associated Press.

Image: OAKLANDGHOSTSHIP.COM

Fire officials said the building didn't have any sprinklers inside, and all the clutter-filled nooks served as kindling.

About 50 to 100 people were believed to be inside the building on Friday when a three-alarm fire broke out at 11:32 p.m., according to Oakland city officials. The roof of the building collapsed onto the second floor, forcing firefighters to temporarily halt their search and rescue operations early Saturday morning.

At least 33 people died in the fire, the Oakland Fire Department confirmed Sunday. Dozens of people may still be missing, although fire officials said some individuals initially reported as missing have been located.

In Facebook groups and in a Google Doc, relatives and friends sought help tracking down loved ones who might've been at Friday's Ghost Ship party. 

Facebook also engaged its safety-check feature for the Oakland fire.

"Last night's fire was an immense tragedy," Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said in a statement Saturday. "Our focus right now is on the victims and their families and ensuring that we have a full accounting for everyone who was impacted by this tragedy."

Associated Press contributed reporting to this story.