Oakland Will Pay $32.7 Million to Settle Ghost Ship Fire Lawsuits

The city of Oakland, Calif., has agreed to pay nearly $33 million to settle lawsuits filed on behalf of the victims of a fire that killed 36 people in a two-story converted warehouse in 2016.

The families of 32 of the victims who died when flames consumed the structure, which housed an artist collective known as the Ghost Ship, will receive $23.5 million, the city said in a statement. A survivor, Sam Maxwell, who the city said lives “with severe, lifelong injuries and major medical expenses,” will receive $9.2 million.

The blaze, on Dec. 2, 2016, was one of the worst structure fires in recent U.S. history.

People had gathered on the second floor of the warehouse for an electronic music dance party when the fire started. The building did not have a permit to host parties or operate as a residence, and most of the people who were living there were doing so in violation of zoning laws. Attendees and residents struggled to evacuate the building as they navigated a haphazard maze of broken pianos, shoddy electrical equipment and a makeshift staircase made of wooden pallets.

The East Bay Times, which won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the fire and its aftermath, found that the city had missed opportunities to flag hazards at the warehouse that could have contributed to the inferno.