Oakland mayor is shouted down and accused of 'victim blaming' as she speaks at vigil to victims of warehouse fire 

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The mayor of Oakland was booed and jeered at a vigil last night for those who died in the warehouse fire after being accused of 'victim blaming'.

Hundreds of people gathered for the candle-light vigil in Oakland's Lake Merrit to honour the 36 people who died in the blaze at an artists' enclave.

Those in the crowd were seen embracing as well as laying floral tributes and chanting aloud the names of people they lost in the inferno.

The mayor of Oakland was booed and jeered at a vigil for those who died in the warehouse fire after being accused of 'victim blaming'

Hundreds of people gathered for the candle-light vigil last night in Oakland's Lake Merrit to honour the 36 people who died in the blaze

One man even held up a sign offering 'free hugs'.

But the memorial turned into a political confrontation when Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf began to address the crowd.

Schaaf had already come under fire as previous speakers at the vigil had urged the city of Oakland to protect 'warehouse' residences where some people have apparently been forced to live due to skyrocketing housing prices.

The memorial briefly turned into a political confrontation when Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf began to address the crowd as was booed. She is pictured at the warehouse on Sunday

She had also been criticized for emphasizing the warehouse's code violations in the immediate aftermath of the fire instead of addressing the need for affordable housing.

And as she began addressing the vigil, NBC reported that some started shouting 'stop victim blaming' and 'step down' as she took the microphone.

This lead to one of the vigil organizers having to step in to ask people to be respectful.

But Schaaf said: 'It's OK. It's OK. This city is going to go through a lot of emotions, and one of those is anger, and that is my job to hear that.

'As we move forward right now, our focus has to be on those who we know are lost and those we are going to learn have been lost,' she said, according to NBC.

But after she resumed her speech, which was captured on camera, the crowd shouted her down once again, hurling a barrage of abuse at her.

Schaaf, a Democrat, was elected mayor of Oakland in November 2014 after being endorsed by Governor of California Jerry Brown.

Tex Allen offers hugs for mourners during a vigil in memory of victims of the Oakland warehouse fire that killed 36 people 

Hundreds of people turned up at the vigil and held candles and signs in honour of the fire victims

She had previously served on Oakland City Council for four years and has also worked as an attorney.

Since she took office the city has become one of the most expensive housing markets in the country after tech firms such as Uber moved to the area.

Just last month, she gave an interview with the San Francisco Business Journal about how she planned to tackle the housing crisis.

She said: '(We are working to) create some significant new funding sources for affordable housing development as well as one of our big strategies for preventing displacement, which is to acquire existing housing where low-income families are already living and make those permanently affordable.'

Meanwhile today, it appears the search for those killed in the fire appeared to be coming to an end as authorities confirmed they didn't believe any additional bodies would be found.

A woman cries and prays during a vigil honoring those who died. Police are still investigating what caused the fire 

It appears the search for those killed in the fire appeared to be coming to an end as authorities confirmed they didn't believe any additional bodies would be found

Officials said they would turn next to investigating the fire, which erupted late Friday during a dance party. It's unclear how it started.

The district attorney Nancy O'Malley warned of possible murder charges as she determines whether there were any crimes linked to the blaze.

She said: 'We owe it to the community and those who perished in this fire, and those who survived the fire to be methodical, to be thorough, and to take the amount of time it takes to be able to look at every piece of potential evidence.'

It comes as Alameda County sheriff's spokesman Sergeant Ray Kelly said that some of the victims texted relatives, 'I'm going to die,' and 'I love you.'

Rescue crews found bodies of people 'protecting each other, holding each other,' Kelly added.