done and the scene secured as quickly as possible before it starts raining which, of course, will only complicate their efforts in terms of the recovery and the investigation. now my colleague abc 7 news reporter laura anthony is with me here in downtown oakland at the site of the ghost ship warehouse and has more on today eats developments. laura? >> reporter: hi, dan. if there is a bright spot in all of this today, it's that the alameda county sheriff announced that now three-quarters of the building has been searched, he does not expect in his words a huge number of victims to be found in the remaining areas. now the search effort was delayed for a time this morning because of an unstable wall. after an overnight delay the difficult work of searching for bodies resumed, a painstaking job that requires crews to sift through the rubble largely by hand, literally one bucket at a time. it's a process shown in this photo released by the alameda

county sheriff's office. >> that will be taken to a secure location where we'll go through it a second time with cadaver dogs and other employees to review the debris, to make sure we have not missed one specific thing. >> reporter: among the 36 confirmed dead, at least three of the victims are from outside the united states, including korea, guatemala and finland. the assets brought in to help with the search and recovery effort include a giant crane but first pg&e had to cut off power to the immediate area. at this point officials say 75% of the gutted structure has been searched, but there are two key areas where there still might be more bodies. >> there's two areas of concern, the back area of the building where the stage was set, where the fire may have originated or front portion of the building where the roof initially clashed on people near the windows adjacent to 31st street. >> reporter: investigators believe they know the area where the fire started but not a cause. a possible criminal

investigation is under way. >> we're looking at two things. one is whether or not there's any criminal liability attached to this fire and secondly if there is trillion liability, against whom? >> i assure you there is information that we will be providing but we're just on a robert kardashian by-day basis responding to the changing nature of this very complex and devastating event. now the d.a. said the investigation will include a look at the government entities that were responsible for building and safety codes at this warehouse. the mayor said the warehouse was not permitted for residential or the for the that was in progress on friday white when the fire started.

including the oakland police department, fire department as well as atf and the alameda county sheriff's office all helping deal with this tragedy and i'm glad to be the spokesman for the l.a. county sheriff's office. thanks for having me. >> the scene is surseal and the crane has started to do its week. what is it doing? >> it's making sure our first responders are safe and they will be able to shore up the structure so we can get in and get the rest of the remnants of the building out and see if there's any more descendants inside. >> reporter: today the count is at 36. even friday night there been doesings and i'm understanding you are hope there won't be very many more victims. we're very hopeful, but with 25%

of the building still to search there's a possibility that more descendants are inside. >> a lot of how this was able to event as anal. that's going to be something within the d.a.'s purview. >> thanks for coming on. >> thanks for having me. >> j.d. nelsor, pokes person for the sheriff's office and you one of the many agencies the recovery effort to get that done, questions about laughed ones and to get as much done before it starts raining. three people faces a series of questions of what was going on inside the warehouse and it was.

the owner of the warehouse lease it had to who then rented it out to parts of the building and many of the. gwen round the -- he also advertised thor to the on certainly yaurts many investigators say never vicks tim had a chance to escape the flames and now a woman who describes herself as a former friend of deric says this was an accide

accident. >> the one in the barks if you had been there only once you probably wouldn't have been it was there, you haven't could have just to you people on that floor, it was following. you know, it temgs. identify seen this a bunch of times. using the word staircase, interests swiss family robinson treehouse staircases. i've seen treehouses with better staircases, it was nolts safe. >> that really gives you some perspective what the conditions were. there was less of a chance of people complaining about what

was really happening inside of the wearhouse. all of this will be part of the investigation, of course. abc 7 news reporter sergio quintana has been talking with experts about the dangers of living spaces like the oakland warehouse behind me and sergio joins us live from oakland eats serge ore? >> i talked with a man who literally wrote the book that fire intention have -- so he can be he's an expert on how fast fires can grow especially in closed spaces. >> reporter: people who survived date and internio. >> and there was a lot of stuff. the flames were too much. >> john david is a fire forensics tintists and they end

up making a wrong turn and instead of turning to the left to go out the dore and end up in a dead end. >>-pets, bets. >> in an enclosure, the hot gases that you're producing anywhere go to the ceiling and now the radiant yeast is trying the and how the roof and sealing eventually collapse. and those who lieu of, work and woes -- take their own safety

seriously. >> it's goal to have be a aren't i and. >> and if some place. >> >> so much work here being done and a lot more to talk about as we continue our coverage here this evening live from 31st and international boulevard including people who spend time in this neighborhood are telling me today. i went around and spoke to a lot of people who just came out because they felt compelled to do so. all of that coming up and for now let's go back to the studio. >> dan, thank you very much. an elementary school is among the confirmed dead. his fame is dravin mcgill. >> abc 7 news reporter lyanne melendez has been speaking to his closest friends, including one who was with him that night and manages to

>> yeah, this will begin about 6:30 including the victims, you ay mentioned, deputy and just up the road is the school of the arts where he attended. when walking through this campus you can almost hear the lyrics to the song "american pie," the day the music died. 17-year-old dravin mcgill was a member of the vocal ensemble on the ruth asawa music of the arts. >> that was his favorite thing to do. >> most people heard with -- >> he really was is spurt of the money, definitely him.

westhood was already with him an last night friday atexting the reaf. somehow he followed boysed and h hid his -- i'm still hike in shock still. still trying to process what happened and feel like i haven't real el fully accepted it. yeah, i mean, glad to be with these guys like we're all dealing with it together i think. >> the whole school right now is devastated. i don't know if there's another word for that. >> reporter: every school has a wellness center with counsellors. >> like the glue that kind of held us together for the most part. he was really just, you know, he didn't want to hear us argue, didn't want to hear us bicker and be unhappeny. >> students here started to

think of ways to honor these monday. yesterday i'll going to some friends and we left some candles and messages and i think that helps a lot. >> reporter: now, back here at the castro district where a vigil will begin in about 20 minutes or so and people have already started to gather. i'm told by the district that students of the school of the arts will have their own vigil eventually, but, of course, not tonight, and i just want to say one last thing. i know that school very well. i know a few stints there, they are agazing students and well-rounded and i know in my heart they will get through this. leave from the castro district, lyanne melendez. >> thank you, lyanne. from asaying musician.

>> and the search for artist space in oakland. a look at how icing rents may play a role. >> and a live look outside right now. you can see the sun setting and the cloud layer right there. meteorologist

the neighbors who live in the fruitvale neighborhood. >> it really has, ama and eric. very difficult indeed and many of them have been coming out here just to see what they have

been seeing on television and also to pay their respects and there is a lot to say and within the last hour or so a giant grain was put into place. we can take a live picture and show you the grain. the adjacent roof of the building. you can see the firefighter there and another person that you occasionally see in plain clothes. firefighters doing some inspections and perhaps a structuralner as they continue to try to assess any risk to assist the recovery effort and get inside the rest of the building that they haven't been able to search and search for potential victims and, of course, critical evidence as this is very much a criminal investigation. this is a live investigation and there's the other gentleman that you see there inspecting this scene. there was concern about a wall that might not be safe so that's why they put this crane into place happened now you see several people doing this work and as i said there's a lot more to see and a lot more to think

about because this tragedy is really so enormous and inexplicable and so hard to grasp and i spent this afternoon talking to some people who just came down because they felt compelled to do so. here's one of the folks that i spoke with. >> marcel, middle of the afternoon, you felt compelled to come down and see this for yourself? >> yes, because i'm a native of oakland. i've been here all my life. i'm 32 years old. we haven't had anything like this happen since i think the earthquake back in 1989. >> that's right. >> and i used to work in this area not too far down the street and there was a lot of young people down there around my age that lost friends, lost their lives there, and i just wanted to come down here and see it firsthand and not necessarily be trying to be here for information but more so just to

show condolences and i've said a prayer since i've been how the here for everyone. >> marcel really thoughtful and kind young man who came down here because it's his part of town. he knows it very well, and as you heard him say he can relate because he's of the age of the majority of people who attended this party and this event on friday night that ended so tragically. a lot of people have come down for the same reason. it's a somber scene and really very moving, i have to say. >> move to come and eric, ama, let's go back to the studio. >> thanks so much, dan, and we have learned some of the victims and those still missing in the fire are students or recent graduates of uc berkeley. >> jonathan bloom has that part of the story. nearly ten miles from the side of the deadly fire to the kalx and this is the center of a station that's waiting and hoping. three miss mc after the fire were volunteers here, including

chelsea faith dolan who had had a weekly radio show here on thursdays. she was scheduled to perform at the party when the fire broke out and hasn't posted online and also missing is griffin madden, a uc student who was another kalx volunteer and worked across the way at cal performances and he was there with a friend david klein who did not make it out alive who says he recently graduated from uc berkeley with a double major in cognitive and community sciences and two other members, donna kellogg and nick gomez hall are among those known to be killed and there are more students missing. the daily californian since jenny morris and jenny plotkin were roommates and both remain unaccounted for. the university is not talking about the search for those who are missing. we're leaving that.

>> we're also learning about the other fire deck kids. including two who dedicated their life. >> 35-year-old huff from hockey land was an attist who worked with youth a. >> two were accomplished moosh yap. cash was part of a musical duo and brandon chase witnauer has been described on facebook as a will it aented musician. >> how does someone end up living in an artist loft? >> a lot of times it's cheech rents and heave to crunch the area. the average went is $3,799 a month. that rushed renters to oakland

which the drop costs to $1278 so it's still high and others look around for or theist spaces. in oakland 250 square svete around 650. many of the units do not allow full time living but often allow 24-hour hack ses for working and in some situations legal high end work, live, union, can -- that's how how many we seeing all these converted warehouses. >> michael, thank you. >> sure. >> time to turn our attention to the weather. >> meteorologist sandhya patel has more on rain to expect. >> we'll be seeing raining days ahead and before the rain we'll have cold conditions. live dopplerp showing you the

cloud. that's how it will is that right out, patches of fog. you'll get to temperatures will be in the 50s and then ren. >> those temperatures will that will make its presence known and we bring in our some impact scale. the strong est is thursday and a 1 on our tomorrow impact kale. >> spreading, wednesday night no thursday, this is going to impact your evening commute and

thursday afternoon when you look at the rainfall totals, 2 to more than 3 inches of rain and everywhere else will get a healthy dose. you can track it and here's the acsetter 1 on pens, a 2 on our imbeing pact scale. heavy, labored breathing heavy, labored breathing heavy, labored breathing coughing breathing through oxygen mask breathing through oxygen mask breathing through oxygen mask breathing through oxygen mask covered california. it's more than just health care. it's life care.

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president obama is responding to the tragedy in oakland in a statement this morning. he stayed his prayers go out to the people of oakland and thanks dedicated first responders for their tireless work. >> he says oakland is one of the most diverse and creative cities in our country and families and residents pull together in the wake of this awful tragedy, they will have the unwavering support of the american people. >> governor brown is offering his condolences as well. he appeared as aus conference today. his nominee to replace kamala harris as attorney general. >> oakland's mayor says too that

may have contributed to the if you go will be other than the fact that the code provisions and permitting a very important punks. >> an outstourg of support. afoot and light-hearted i take to the open road. healthy, free, the world before me, the long brown path before me leading wherever i choose. the east and the west are mine.

the north and the south are mine. all seems beautiful to me.

coming up at 6:00, our team coverage of the tragedy in oakland continues. we'll take you live to lake merritt where a vigil for the victims takes place month. >> the i-team's dan noyes speaks to a neighbor of the warehouse who complained repeatedly about the dangers and the parties there. did anyone listen? that's coming up amount 6:00. >> now back to dan ashley at the site of the oakland warrenhouse

fire. dan? >> eric, ama, thanks very much. three days after the fire are still going to this site to way their respects. many people dropped off cards, flowers and candles and people have left messages of condolences and hope and soap are from the air's large latino community but others have come from nearby cities to just least a knows, everything. >> and to have strength get to this. >> we'll all within and which part of pick. >> this advance will be. people coming in really large numbers just to try to take it aural in, try to get some perspective on what happened,

how it happened, why it happened? of course, there are no easy answers and many here wondering what could have' will be that and for it to be so clearly up safe in the tent of a fair. for now i'm dan ashley reporting from 21st and international boulevard. eric, am narks. >> dan, thanks a lot. two different fund-raising campaigns are bringing in money to help the victives of the fire. one has shattered and now it subpasses will u.n.

>> so far the effort has raised more than $250,000. >> "world news tonight, breaking news. the bombshell inside the courtroom. the south carolina jury, and what they revealed a short time ago, after a police officer shoots and kills an unarmed black man in the back as he ran away from the scene. what happened inside that jury room. new reporting in the deadly california inferno. at least three dozen trapped and killed. and, new details right here tonight. what the stairwell inside was made of. how so many were instantly trapped. the punishment. tonight, the father who left his boy to die in a hot car. what the judge says to the father in that courtroom. and you'll hear it. the shooting in the family pizza restaurant. the shooter with an ar-15, suddenly firing. authorities now say he came after reading a fake story news story involving the election. and, the nfl star. the deadly road rage.