Thu Apr 10 04:03:08 UTC 2025: ## Dominican Republic Nightclub Collapse Death Toll Surpasses 180
**Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic** – The death toll from a nightclub roof collapse in Santo Domingo has risen to 184, marking the deadliest disaster in the Dominican Republic in decades. Rescue efforts concluded Wednesday after two days of searching through the rubble of the Jet Set nightclub, where a section of the roof caved in during a performance by renowned merengue singer Rubby Pérez.
Over 300 rescue workers, including teams from Puerto Rico and Israel, aided by sniffer dogs, combed through the debris. Aerial images revealed the extent of the devastation, with a gaping hole where the roof once stood. The club, a Santo Domingo landmark for 50 years, had been hosting a concert attended by an estimated 500 to 1,000 people when the tragedy struck around 12:44 a.m. Tuesday.
Among the victims are Pérez, a beloved merengue icon, and two former Major League Baseball players, Octavio Dotel and Tony Blanco. At least one U.S. citizen is also confirmed dead. Hundreds more were injured in the collapse. Relatives of the missing continue their desperate search for information at hospitals and the morgue.
Survivors described a sudden and violent collapse, with debris raining down on the crowd. Iris Pena, a survivor, likened the impact to an earthquake or tsunami.
President Luis Abinader declared three days of national mourning. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Pope Francis have also expressed their condolences. Authorities are investigating the cause of the collapse. The Jet Set nightclub issued a statement expressing cooperation with the investigation. This tragedy surpasses the 2005 prison fire in the Dominican Republic, which killed over 130 inmates, as the nation’s worst disaster in recent history.
First Piper 