Ghost Ship warehouse fire

On December 2, 2016, at about 11:20 p.m. PST, a fire started in a former warehouse that had been illegally converted into an artist collective with living spaces (named the Ghost Ship) in Oakland, California which was hosting a concert with 80-100 attendees. The blaze killed 36 people, making it the deadliest fire in the history of Oakland. The building, located in the Fruitvale neighbourhood, was only zoned for industrial purposes, and residential and entertainment uses were illegal. It was also the deadliest building fire in the United States since The Station nightclub fire in 2003, the deadliest in California since the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the deadliest mass-casualty event in Oakland since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.

Master tenant Derick Almena lived on the premises with his wife and three children, and sub-let the first floor to about 20 other residents who were instructed to not divulge that they lived there. In Almena's lease for the building, he did not say that it would be used as a residence, and on two separate occasions he told police that nobody lived in the building. The Alameda County district attorney's office launched an investigation into the fire's causes, and in 2017 charged Almena and his assistant Max Harris with felony involuntary manslaughter. In 2018, both pleaded no contest to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in a plea bargain with prosecutors, but the judge overseeing the case discarded the plea deals and the men were tried in court, facing as many as 36 years in prison. On September 4, 2019, the jury deadlocked 10-2 for conviction on the 36 counts of manslaughter against Almena, resulting in a mistrial, while Harris was acquitted on all 36 counts. In 2021, Almena pled guilty to the 36 counts of and was sentenced to 12 years in prison and released for time served.

In July 2020, the city of Oakland settled a civil lawsuit for the victims and agreed to pay a total of $33 million: $9 million to one person who survived with lifelong injuries and $24 million to the families of the 36 who were killed in the fire. In August 2020, Pacific Gas and Electric Company settled a civil lawsuit for 32 of the victims for an undisclosed amount.