Posted on 12/03/2016 5:33:42 PM PST by The_Harlequin
Fire tore through an Oakland warehouse converted into artist studios during a late night dance party Friday night, killing at least nine people, and officials said Saturday that the death toll could rise as high as 40.
I’m surprised no one has commented on this place’s sadly apt name.
“And where would you turn with the first puffs of smoke?”
I wouldn’t have gone into that tinderbox in the first place.
Yes, extension cords are a potential problem, especially in a bohemian environment where common sense might be in short supply. I can imagine extension cords that are too long or daisy chained so they get hot, cords overloaded for their ratings (space heaters?), cords pinched or running under rugs where they get frayed from being stepped on, cords tacked down so that metal pierces the insulation, cords wrapped so they can’t dissipate heat, gaps where the plug is not fully seated in the receptacle and anything touching the prongs could cause a short. Even if that wasn’t how the fire actually started, it was probably a gold mine of opportunity. That combined with the other stupid safety violations made the place a death trap.
I also read that artist housing like this is popular in the area, so I am guessing that the fire marshal has their work cut out for them. Hopefully, they will get around to it before another tragedy occurs.
One of the most painful things I've had to ever do was look back upon my life and acknowledge "I was a bad person", but it had to be done and I am a better person for it.
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