Singer Rubby Pérez is among at least 66 people killed when the roof of a nightclub where he was performing collapsed in the Dominican Republic.
Around 300 people had gone to his gig at Jet Set in the capital Santo Domingo when the roof caved in shortly before midnight on Monday.
‘It happened so quickly,’ Pérez’s manager Enrique Paulino said. ‘I managed to throw myself into a corner.’
Usually the city’s nightlife hub, where people swarm between clubs, bars and restaurants, it’s been transformed into a sea of rescue teams with survivors in blood-soaked clothes.
More than 160 people were injured in the collapse, with the death toll steadily rising through Tuesday. Pérez’s saxophone player is also among the dead.
Former Major League Baseball player Octavio Dotel was also killed in the collapse.
Speaking 14 hours into the search effort, before Pérez had been found, his brother Micaías said: ‘We only trust that the grace of God really will work a miracle.’
It is not yet clear what caused the roof collapse at Jet Set, which caught fire in 2023 after lightning struck its power supply.
Today Jet Set – described as the country’s ‘place of reference’ by Billboard magazine – said the ‘tragedy struck a deep note in the hearts of all of us’.
In a statement, the club said: ‘The loss of life leaves us in a state of profound pain and dismay.
‘In this difficult time, our prayers are with each of the affected families. We share their pain as if it were our own, because we are also in mourning.
‘We are collaborating fully and transparently with the relevant authorities to assist the victims and clarify what happened.’
Rescue teams continue to pull bodies from the rubble, but it is not yet clear how many still trapped inside will survive.
Juan Manuel Mendez, director of the Centre of Emergency Operations, said: ‘We presume that many of them are still alive, and that is why the authorities here will not give up until not a single person remains under that rubble.’
President Luis Abinader wrote on X: ‘We deeply regret the tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub. We have followed the case minute by minute since it happened.
‘All relief agencies have provided the necessary assistance and are working tirelessly in the rescue efforts. Our prayers are with the affected families.’
More than 8,000km away in Serbia, the country is still grappling with the effects of a train station’s roof collapsing in November.
A six-year-old girl was among the 14 people killed instantly when a concrete awning suddenly fell in the country’s second city of Novi Sad. One more died two weeks later, while a third – a 16-year-old boy – died last month. The awning had only been built during recent renovations, which were part of lucrative infrastructure deals with China. A former minister was among those charged in connection with it, and the government has announced an anti-corruption campaign in response. But it’s sparked massive protests that brought down the government itself.
