Despair and anguish fills the air as Dominican club toll shoots over 200

Santo Domingo: The number of dead in a roof collapse at an iconic nightclub in the Dominican Republic surged to 221 on Thursday, an official said.

Juan Manuel Mendez, director of the Center of Emergency Operations, said crews at the scene were still looking for victims and potential survivors, although no one has been found alive since Tuesday afternoon.

“We’re not going to abandon anyone. Our work will continue,” he said.

Meanwhile, dozens of people in the capital of Santo Domingo still searched for their loved ones, growing frustrated upon getting no answers after visiting hospitals and the country’s forensic institute.

Doctors warned that some of the two dozen patients who remained hospitalized were still not in the clear, especially the eight who were in critical condition. “If the trauma is too great, there’s not a lot of time” left to save patients in that condition, said Health Minister Víctor Atallah.

He and other doctors said that injuries include fractures in the skull, femur and pelvis caused by slabs of cement falling on those attending a merengue concert at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, where more than 200 were injured. The government said Wednesday night that it was moving to a recovery phase focused on finding bodies, but Juan Manuel Mendez, director of the Centre of Emergency Operations, said crews at the scene were still looking for victims and potential survivors although no one has been found alive since Tuesday afternoon. “We’re not going to abandon anyone. Our work will continue,” he said.

The legendary club was packed with musicians, professional athletes and government officials when dust began falling from the ceiling and into people’s drinks early Tuesday. Minutes later, the roof collapsed.

Victims include merengue icon Rubby Perez, who had been singing to the crowd before the roof fell; former MLB players Octavio Dotel and Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera; and Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the northwestern province of Montecristi whose brother is seven-time Major League Baseball All-Star Nelson Cruz.

Also killed was a retired United Nations official; saxophonist Luis Solís, who was playing onstage when the roof fell; New York-based fashion designer Martín Polanco; the son and daughter-in-law of the minister of public works; the brother of the vice minister of the Ministry of Youth; and three employees of Grupo Popular, a financial services company, including the president of AFP Popular Bank and his wife.