Death toll in US warehouse blaze reaches 36

NEW YORK

At least three dozen dead bodies were recovered from a warehouse in Oakland, California, by late Monday following a blaze on Saturday, according to local authorities.

“We are no closer to finding a cause,” Oakland Fire Battalion Chief Melinda Drayton told reporters Monday about the blaze that gutted the warehouse which last played host to a concert.

Alameda County Deputy Sheriff Tya Modeste said 11 of the 36 bodies recovered so far have been identified and families notified.

The search is now paused as a wall inside the building poses potential hazard for the teams.

President Barack Obama sympathized with the families of the victims on Monday. "While we still don't know the full toll of this disaster, we do know that an American community has been devastated," Obama said.

District Attorney Nancy O’Malley said her office would “leave no stone unturned” in an ongoing investigation into the incident, one of the deadliest fires in the city’s history.

The early Saturday blaze occurred at an event for musician Golden Donna’s 100 percent Silk West Coast tour.

The East Bay Times reported the fire is likely one of the deadliest single-structure fires in Oakland’s history.

The newspaper said the venue was being used by roughly 50 artists in a collective and that 55 firefighters were called to the scene to help thwart the blaze.