Coroner Identifies Second of Two Men Killed in Oakland Blaze

The Alameda County coroner’s bureau today identified a 36-year-old man who died in a three-alarm fire in Oakland early Saturday morning. Daniel Thomas was an Oakland resident at the time of his death, according to the coroner’s bureau.

He perished in a fire at a two-story apartment building in the 600 block of 24th Street along with Davis Letona, 27, also of Oakland. Fire crews responded to a smoke detector that went off shortly before 3 a.m., Oakland fire Battalion Chief Geoff Hunter said. The blaze started in a second-floor unit and soon spread from the apartment to the rear of an adjoining building, prompting firefighters to upgrade the fire to three alarms, Hunter said.

Fire crews brought the blaze under control by around 4:10 a.m., but not before two men had died and some 30 people had been displaced, Hunter said. All of the occupants, except for the two who died, were able to self-evacuate. The American Red Cross set up an evacuation center at its office in Oakland, where displaced people were able to receive assistance. No other injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Friends of Letona have set up a gofundme.com page to raise money for a memorial service and to assist in bringing his family up to the Bay Area to celebrate his life.

For more information on how to donate, visit http://www.gofundme.com/pjk2p0.

By Bay City News

Photo via Shutterstock

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