The death toll from the nightclub roof collapse on Tuesday in the Dominican Republic continued to rise steadily as heavy machinery, drones and dogs worked in the night in a desperate quest to find survivors.
By the end of Tuesday, at least 98 people had died. At a concert at Jetset, a popular nightclub in Santo Domingo, the roof suddenly fell into a cave around 12:45am. That Monday night dance party was a decades-old tradition where people in Dominican society were frequented. Many of them were still trapped inside.
Among those killed or injured during Meringue concerts were members of the Dominican Republic Congress and two former US Major League Baseball players.
“There are not enough words to describe the pain this event causes,” club owner Antonio Espirat said in a video posted on social media. “What happened was devastating for everyone.”
Authorities said they are focusing on rescues and have yet to begin investigating the cause of the tragedy. The former cinema building was at least 50 years old and was the scene of a fire a few years ago.
Authorities said it is unclear how many people were inside at the time of the collapse. The victim was still drawn from the tile rub and was alive and dead.
With each Grimm update, the number of deaths rose.
By Tuesday evening, the National Institute of Forensic Science had received 89 organizations, according to director Santos Zimenez.
In a series of social media posts, authorities said rescuers had travelled at least 155 times to local hospitals.
With so many people injured, ambulances had to initially transport them to two or three hospitals at once, Juan Manuel Mendes, director of the emergency operations centre, said in an Instagram video shared by the National Police.
“We’re bringing out people who can be rescued alive,” Mendes said. “You can hear people asking you to help me.”
Open for 50 years, Jetset is one of the most famous clubs in the Dominican Republic. It is particularly well known for its Monday show, live music staples in the city.
The unsettled family gathered at the scene under the fiery sun, desperately trying to get news about their loved ones. Some people said up to seven relatives have been missing after the disaster.
Among the people in the nightclub was Nelsy M. Cruz Martinez, governor of Monte Christie, Dominica, a northwestern region of the country near the border with Haiti.
Cruz called President Lewis Abinader at 12:49am. While she was trapped in a tile rub, First Lady Raquel P. Albale told reporters on the scene.
Cruz later died in the hospital, Abinader said outside the club Tuesday morning.
“I deeply regret the tragedy that took place at Jetset Nightclub,” Avinader told X.
Former Major League pitcher Octavio Dotel (51), was pulled out of Ware Rub and taken to a local hospital. He later passed away, and was announced by the Dominican Republic’s professional baseball league.
Another major league baseball player, Tony Blanco, has also passed away. Major League Baseball committee members confirmed in a statement.
Several members of the Dominican Conference were believed to have been inside the club, and several lawmakers went to the site.
Carlos J. Gill Rodriguez, who represents Santo Domingo in Congress, was injured and had to undergo emergency surgery, his office said. His wife was injured and released from hospital, but his two assistants who also appeared at the event have not been found.
“My beloved brother!” one woman cried out, knowing that the brother had not survived.
Another woman, Yeheris Ventura, sobbed as she was at the club and explained her fears that she hadn’t heard from her husband, Gálver Silvestre, that her name was not a list of survivors, but a list of the dead that had been circulating.
The show featured meringue singer Rubby Pérez.
The video, circulated on social media and verified by the New York Times, showed Perez performing in front of a revelling group. The camera began to shake, and people began screaming as the large chandelier fell from the ceiling.
Another video, filmed in the aftermath and verified by the era, captured massive destruction. The entire roof was shown to have collapsed, with tiled rubs covering the stage and dance floor, and rescuers searching for the wreckage.
Authorities announced that the singer was in the hospital, but one of his brothers said these reports were wrong and the entertainer remained inside the tile rub 14 hours after the collapse. Perez has not been found, Mendes confirmed late Tuesday afternoon.
The authorities’ son and his wife were still missing, authorities said.
“But we hope to God and pray for a positive outcome,” Minister Eduardo Estrella said in a statement.
Major League Baseball Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr. has issued a statement expressing his sadness over the deaths of Cruz and two former players.
“The connection between baseball and the Dominican Republic is deep and we’re thinking about all the Dominican players and fans throughout the entire game today,” he said.
Carlos Mendoza Diaz, an architect and surveyor for the Dominican Institute of Engineers, said the Jetset building was decades old and had recently been damaged.
“We gathered information that it was not only a structure that was built for cinemas and later converted to nightclubs, but that these were obviously different safety parameters,” he said. “We also know that a fire broke out a few years ago, and perhaps a combination of these events could have caused the collapse.”
Nader Ibrahim, Amelia Nierenberg and Jonathan Wolfe contributed to the report.
