Last month, a massive four-alarm fire in Oakland consumed a building under construction near Lake Merritt, displacing nearly 700 residents. That blaze comes less year than a year after the deadly Ghost Ship fire, which killed 36 people. According to an investigation by the East Bay Times, of the 879 buildings flagged as unsafe since 2011, Oakland’s Bureau of Fire Prevention only followed up on 183 — only 21 percent. In this segment, Forum talks with Pulitzer-Prize-winning reporter Thomas Peele about why so many Oakland buildings remain unchecked.
Guests:
Thomas Peele, investigative reporter, Bay Area News Group
More Information:
‘Huge failure’: 80 Percent of Oakland Firefighter Warnings of Unsafe Buildings Go Unchecked (Mercury News)