The roof collapses at a Dominican Republic nightclub, killing at least 98 people

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — The roof of an iconic nightclub in the Dominican capital collapsed early Tuesday during a merengue concert attended by politicians, athletes and others, leaving at least 98 people dead and 160 injured, authorities said.

Crews were searching for potential survivors in the rubble at the one-story Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, said Juan Manuel Méndez, director of the Center of Emergency Operations.

“We continue clearing debris and searching for people,” he said on Tuesday night. “We're going to search tirelessly for people.”

Nearly 12 hours after the top of the nightclub collapsed onto patrons, rescue crews were still pulling out survivors from under the debris, shushing those around them so they could listen for faint cries for help. Firefighters removed blocks of broken concrete and used sawed pieces of wood as planks to lift heavy debris as the noise of drills breaking through concrete filled the air.

Méndez said rescue crews were prioritizing three areas in the club: “We're hearing some sounds.”

Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the northwestern province of Montecristi and sister of seven-time Major League Baseball All-Star Nelson Cruz, was among the victims. She had called President Luis Abinader at 12:49 a.m., saying she was trapped and that the roof had collapsed, first lady Raquel Abraje told reporters. Officials said Cruz died later at the hospital.

“This is too great a tragedy,” Abraje said, her voice breaking.

The Professional Baseball League of the Dominican Republic posted on X that former MLB pitcher Octavio Dotel, 51, also died. Officials had pulled Dotel from the debris earlier and brought him to a hospital. Also killed was Dominican baseball player Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera, said league spokesman Satosky Terrero.

Late Tuesday night, those still looking for their family and friends gathered around a man playing a guitar outside the club as they sang hymns.

Officials said at least 160 people were injured, among them national lawmaker Bray Vargas.

Relatives of merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who was performing when the roof collapsed, initially said that he had been rescued, but Méndez said later Tuesday that wasn't true. He said rescue crews were still looking for Pérez.

Pérez's manager, Enrique Paulino, whose shirt was spattered with blood, told reporters at the scene that the concert began shortly before midnight, with the roof collapsing almost an hour later, killing the group's saxophonist.

“It happened so quickly. I managed to throw myself into a corner,” he said, adding that he initially thought it was an earthquake.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the roof to collapse or when the Jet Set building was last inspected.

The club issued a statement saying it was cooperating with authorities and noted that the owner, Antonio Espaillat, was out of the country and returned late Tuesday.

“There are no words to express the pain this event has caused. What happened has been devastating for everyone,” he said.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Public Works referred questions to the mayor’s office. A spokesperson for the mayor’s office did not respond to a message for comment.

Prosecutor Rosalba Ramos told TV station CDN that while “everyone wants to know” what happened, authorities were still focused on finding survivors. They set up a makeshift morgue near the club while more than 120 people lined up to donate blood at two different centers.

Manuel Olivo Ortiz, whose son attended the concert but did not return home, was among those anxiously waiting outside the club known for its traditional Monday parties where renowned national and international artists performed.

“We're holding on only to God,” Olivo said.

Also awaiting word was Massiel Cuevas, godmother of 22-year-old Darlenys Batista.

“I'm waiting for her. She's in there, I know she's in there,” Cuevas said, firm in her belief that Batista would be pulled out alive.

President Abinader wrote on X that all rescue agencies are “working tirelessly” to help those affected.

“We deeply regret the tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub. We have been following the incident minute by minute since it occurred,” he wrote.

Abinader arrived at the scene and hugged those looking for friends and family, some with tears streaming down their faces. “We have faith in God that we will rescue even more people alive,” he told reporters.

An official with a megaphone stood outside the club imploring the large crowd that had gathered to search for friends and relatives to give ambulances space.

“You have to cooperate with authorities, please,” he said. “We are removing people.”

At one hospital where the injured were taken, an official stood outside reading aloud the names of survivors as a crowd gathered around her and yelled out the names of their loved ones.

Meanwhile, dozens of people gathered at the National Institute of Forensic Pathology, which shared pictures of the victims so their loved ones could identify them.

Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

People hold up photos of their relatives while waiting to identify them at the National Institute of Forensic Pathology after the roof collapsed at Jet Set nightclub during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

A relative of a missing person is comforted by friends outside Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

People searching for their missing relatives peruse a list of names outside the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

A soldier hydrates while rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

A police officer reacts during the search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Police cordon off the area as rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

A soldier hydrates while rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

Relatives cry while waiting for news of loved ones outside the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

Rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

People listen to lists of survivors as crews search for others trapped in the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025.(AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Rescue workers carry a person pulled from the wreckage of the nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

A woman stands outside the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Rescue workers carry a person pulled from the wreckage of the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddy Vittini)

People gather outside the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025.(AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

People read lists of survivors as crews search for others trapped at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Hernandez)

Rescue workers search for survivors at the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025.(Noticias SIN via AP)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian drones battered the Ukrainian port city of Odesa in a nighttime attack, local authorities said Tuesday, less than 24 hours after a purported Easter ceasefire unilaterally declared by Moscow ended and just over a day before Ukrainian, British, French and U.S. officials are due to meet in London to discuss the war.

Anticipation is building over whether diplomatic efforts can stop more than three years of fighting since Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor. Hostility has run deep between the two sides since Russia invaded and illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in 2014.

Trump said last week that negotiations were “coming to a head” and insisted that neither side is “playing” him in his push to end the grinding war.

This came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested last week the U.S. might soon back away from negotiations altogether if they don't progress. He spoke in Paris after talks among U.S., Ukrainian and European officials produced outlines for steps toward peace and appeared to make some long-awaited progress.

A new meeting is expected Wednesday in London, and Rubio suggested it could be decisive in determining whether the Trump administration continues its involvement.

Odesa came under a “massive attack” by Russian drones overnight, injuring at least three people, the head of Odesa regional administration, Oleh Kiper, wrote on his Telegram page Tuesday.

A residential building in a densely populated urban area, civilian infrastructure and an educational facility were hit, he said.

Also, during daylight Tuesday, Russia hit the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzhia with two massive aerial glide bombs — a retrofitted Soviet weapon that for months it has used to lay waste to eastern Ukraine.

The attack killed a 69-year-old woman and injured 22 people, including three children, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there are no plans for talks on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s proposal to halt strikes on civilian facilities. He said Moscow is prepared to consider such a step but noted that reaching an agreement could take time.

“While talking about civilian infrastructure, it’s necessary to clearly define when such facilities can be a military target and when they can’t,” he said. “If a military meeting is held there, is it a civilian facility? It is. But is it a military target? Yes, it is. There are some nuances here that need to be discussed.”

The Ukrainian air force said Russia fired 54 Shahed and decoy drones at Ukraine overnight, marking a resumption of long-range attacks that have blasted civilian areas and sown terror throughout the war.

Russia has stepped up in the past months its use of Shahed drones, expanding its production of the weapon and refining its tactics, the International Institute for Strategic Studies said in a recently published analysis.

After Putin declared a unilateral ceasefire on Saturday, Ukraine said it was ready to reciprocate but said Russian attacks were continuing. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia violated the ceasefire more than 2,900 times.

The Associated Press was unable to verify whether a ceasefire was in place along the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line.

Russia has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for an immediate and full 30-day halt in the fighting by imposing far-reaching conditions.

Meanwhile, both Russia and Ukraine are preparing for the spring-summer military campaign, Ukrainian and Western officials say.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 93rd Kholodnyi Yar Separate Mechanized Brigade press service, Ukrainian servicemen attend an Easter service on their position in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (Mykola Oliinyk/Ukraine's 93rd Mechanized Brigade via AP)