What to know on the roof collapse at the Jet Set club in the Dominican Republic

SAN JUAN Puerto Rico AP The roof of an iconic nightclub in the capital of the Dominican Republic collapsed nearly an hour after a merengue concert began killing at least people and injuring at least Politicians and athletes were among those at Jet Set in Santo Domingo when accident struck Tuesday Executives explained it s too early to determine why the roof fell Rescue crews searched for survivors in the rubble through the night as a crowd of people awaiting word from their loved ones waited anxiously nearby What happened The roof collapsed nearly an hour after the merengue concert headed by Rubby P rez began at Jet Set which was known for hosting merengue parties every Monday that drew international and national artists and high-profile Dominicans A video posted on social media shows parts of the roof falling as people began to move away seconds before the entire roof fell Nelsy Cruz the governor of Monte Cristi province and sister of seven-time Major League Baseball All-Star Nelson Cruz was the first person to alert Dominican President Luis Abinader about the calamity She called him and noted she was buried under the debris according to first lady Raquel Abraje Nelsy Cruz later died at the hospital from her injuries personnel announced Why did the roof collapse Agents say it s too early to determine why the roof fell Firefighters removed blocks of broken concrete and created makeshift planks to try and reach survivors buried under the debris It s unclear how often ruling body administrators inspect buildings in the Dominican Republic and when the last inspection was done at Jet Set A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Citizens Works notified The Associated Press that all personnel were on scene and not available She referred questions to the mayor s office A spokesperson for the mayor s office could not be reached for comment The owners of Jet Set who issued a announcement saying they were cooperating with executives could not be right now reached for comment Who are the casualties Relatives of merengue singer Rubby P rez who was performing when the roof collapsed commented earlier that he was rescued But Juan Manuel M ndez director of the Center of Crisis Operations noted late Tuesday afternoon that information turned out to be false He stated rescue crews were still looking for P rez Meanwhile the singer s manager Enrique Paulino whose shirt was spattered with blood declared the group s saxophonist died The Professional Baseball League of the Dominican Republic posted on X that former MLB pitcher Octavio Dotel died Agents had earlier rescued Dotel from the debris and transported him to a hospital Also killed was Dominican baseball athlete Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera stated Satosky Terrero league spokesman What is Jet Set It s an iconic nightclub in southern Santo Domingo that has operated for nearly five decades It was known for its Jet Set Mondays that featured local and international artists The club opened in as a club and restaurant becoming the most of popular venue of its kind in the Dominican Republic according to List n Diario a local newspaper It later moved from the place where it originally opened celebrating its first anniversary with merengue and salsa icon Johnny Ventura The club underwent renovations in and and it was struck by lightning in according to the newspaper General admission tickets for Monday s concert with Rubby P rez were while the VIP ones were according to the club s website What s next Rescue crews were to continue looking for survivors through the night While an in-depth examination into the collapse is expected bureaucrats have not yet commented on what might have caused the roof to fall including any probable preliminary findings Prosecutor Rosalba Ramos explained TV station CDN that while everyone wants to know what happened agents were still focused on finding survivors Source