Oakland warehouse operator distraught in interview about deadly fire

The operator of the converted warehouse in Oakland, Calif., where a massive fire killed at least 36 people over the weekend is facing intense scrutiny over his role as de facto landlord of a building that fire officials say was a maze of plywood, tapestries, furniture, art and apparently illegal living spaces.

In an exclusive interview with NBC’s “Today” show on Tuesday, Derick Almena told Matt Lauer he was “incredibly sorry” about the fire, which broke out during a party late Friday night inside a 4,000-square-foot warehouse dubbed the “Ghost Ship.”

“What am I doing here?” Almena said. “Can I just say I’m sorry?”

“The only reason I’m here is to put my face and my body in front,” he said, without finishing his sentence.

A criminal investigation is under way, though it’s unclear whether Almena is the focus.

“The range of charges could be murder all the way to involuntary manslaughter,” Oakland Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley told reporters.

Almena became increasingly distraught as Lauer asked him if he felt should be held accountable for the victims and their families.

“Am I the man who should be held accountable?” Almena asked, repeating Lauer’s question. “I mean, what am I going to say to that, should I be held accountable? I can barely stand here right now.”

Almena, who said he lived in the warehouse with his wife and children, defended the conditions inside.

“I laid my body down there every night,” he said. “We laid our bodies down there. We put our children to bed there every night. We made music. We created art. We opened our home.”

The 47-year-old said the warehouse was a safe place for like-minded artists who couldn’t afford space elsewhere and who “can’t pay your rent because your dream is bigger than your pocketbook.”

“We created something together,” Almena said. “This stopped being me. This stopped being about me three years ago.”

Former residents described the space to the Associated Press as a tinderbox “with few exits, a rickety makeshift staircase, piles of driftwood and a labyrinth of electrical cords.”

“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 Almena’s, told the AP.

Almena said he signed a lease “that was to city standards, supposedly.”

On Monday, Almena told NBC Bay Area that he and a group of tenants covered the monthly $5,000 rent, and that he made repairs to the electrical system without permits after the landlord refused.

Derick Almena (NBC/Today)
Derick Almena (Photo: NBC/Today)

But Shelley Mack, a former tenant, told the NBC News that Almena knew the conditions were “dangerous” but “never spent a dime” on improving them — and favored “profits“ and “partying” over safety.

Almena refuted her claims.

“This is profit? The loss of mass life? I’m a father. I lay my three children down there every night,” he said. “Profit? This is not profit, this is loss. This is a mass grave.”

Related: Almena sparks outrage for mourning loss of venue — not victims

Almena drew sharp criticism for his initial response to the tragedy: a Facebook post that omitted any mention of the victims. “Everything I worked so hard for is gone,” he wrote early Saturday morning.

“I’m only here to say one thing: that I’m incredibly sorry and that everything that I did was to make this a stronger and more beautiful community and to bring people together,” Almena said on the “Today.” “People didn’t walk through those doors because it was a horrible place. People didn’t seek us out to perform and express themselves because it was a horrible place.”

Almena ended the interview by refusing to answer questions that he asked himself.

“On the night of the fire, did I know there was going to be a fire?” Almena asked, apparently unprompted. “Did I remove my children from the space and get a hotel because I wanted to avoid this?”

“No, I’m not going to answer these questions on this level,” he continued. “I’d rather get on the floor and be trampled by the parents. I’d rather let them tear at my flesh than answer these ridiculous questions. I’m so sorry, I’m incredibly sorry.”

People gather during a Monday night vigil for the victims of the warehouse fire in Oakland, Calif. (Photo: Stephen Lam/Reuters)
People gather during a Monday night vigil for the victims of the warehouse fire in Oakland, Calif. (Photo: Stephen Lam/Reuters)