Hope of finding survivors in Dominican Republic club roof collapse fades as death toll rises to 218

Hope is fading for families awaiting word on their loved ones trapped under rubble after the roof of a Dominican Republic nightclub collapsed earlier this week, as the death toll climbed to 218 on Thursday morning.

So far, 189 people were rescued alive after the roof of the popular Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo collapsed Tuesday morning, authorities said in a Thursday morning update.

Juan Manuel Méndez, director of the country’s Emergency Operations Center, added in the Thursday update that search and rescue efforts are still underway in coordination with various state agencies.

The club was once a bustling center for nightlife. The collapse turned the cultural jewel into a wreckage site, with over 300 firefighters pilfering through the rubble and giant cranes removing pieces of the concrete roof.

When the roof caved in, revelers were enjoying a performance by popular merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who was later found dead.

Other identified victims include former MLB players Octavio Dotel and Tony Cabrera, Dominican fashion designer Martín Polanco, family members of Grupo Popular — one of the country’s largest banking companies, and Nelsy Cruz, governor of the Montecristi province.

The country’s Emergency Operations Center said Wednesday night that the mission was transitioning from a search and rescue phase to a recovery operation. 

“Over the past few days, rescue teams have worked without interruption, removing debris, assisting the injured, and recovering people alive,” the agency said in a statement in Spanish. “However, having exhausted all reasonable avenues for finding more survivors, the operation now enters a different, but equally sensitive and crucial, phase: the recovery of human bodies with the due respect and dignity that each victim deserves.”

After the recovery phase, the investigation into the cause of the collapse will begin.