The Fort Worth Press - Hope fades as deaths mount in Dominican Republic nightclub disaster

The disaster at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo sent shockwaves through the Caribbean nation, a major tourism destination.

At least 124 people were killed and over 500 injured when the club's roof caved in while renowned Dominican merengue singer Rubby Perez was performing for a crowd of hundreds in the early hours of Tuesday.

Perez himself died in the calamity, as well as two former Major League Baseball players among the party-goers.

Dozens of relatives gathered outside the club, hospitals and the city morgue Wednesday, clamoring for news as forensic teams continued to identify the dead.

Juan Manuel Mendez, director of emergency operations, said rescue crews still had "24 to 36 hours of work left" to find survivors.

"Hope is the last thing we lose," he said.

- 'A lot of pain' -

Antonio Hernandez, whose son worked in the Jet Set, told AFP he was beginning to despair.

"Yesterday, I was certain (of finding him), I had hope. But in the early hours of the morning... they pulled four dead people out of there," he told AFP, his voice breaking.

The remains in one of the body bags resembled his son's height and build, said Hernandez, but he did not investigate. "I don't have the stomach to find out the worst yet."

Over 300 rescue workers continued combing through mounds of fallen bricks, steel bars and tin sheets, supported by firefighters from Puerto Rico and Israel.

Aerial images of the site showed a scene resembling the aftermath of an earthquake, with a gaping hole where the club's roof had been.

Mercedes Lopez said she was in a lot of pain as she waited to learn the fate of her son at a tent next to the nightclub where the bodies were being brought and the names of the dead were listed.

"We haven't heard anything. They haven't given us any information. We haven't found him on the lists or in the hospitals," she said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent his condolences Wednesday and said at least one US citizen was among the victims.

"Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones affected by this devastating event," he wrote on X.

- Merengue 'idol' mourned-

Local media said there were between 500 and 1,000 people in the club when disaster struck around 12:44 am (0444 GMT) Tuesday. The club can hold 1,700 people.

A video posted on social media showed the venue suddenly plunged into darkness while Perez was singing.

Perez's daughter Zulinka managed to escape but her father did not. His body was recovered Wednesday.

Tributes to the singer, known for hits such as "Volvere" and "Enamorado de Ella," poured in from across Latin America.

"Maestro, what a great pain you leave us," Puerto Rican Grammy-winning singer Olga Tanon wrote on social media.

Perez's former band leader Wilfrido Vargas said he was "devastated."

"The friend and idol of our genre has just left us," he wrote.

The baseball world mourned the death of Octavio Dotel, a 51-year-old baseball pitcher who won the World Series with the St Louis Cardinals in 2011 and Tony Blanco, 45, who also played in the United States.

The governor of Monte Cristi municipality, Nelsy Cruz, was also killed.

President Luis Abinader declared three days of national mourning.

- 'Dirt started falling' -

Iris Pena, a woman who had attended the show, recounted how she escaped with her son.

"At one point, dirt started falling like dust into the drink on the table," she told SIN television.

"A stone fell and cracked the table where we were, and we got out," Pena recounted. "The impact was so strong, as if it had been a tsunami or an earthquake."

The Instagram page of the Jet Set club said it has been in operation for more than 50 years, with shows every Monday until the early hours.

It was one of the Caribbean nation's worst in recent years.

In 2005, more than 130 prisoners in the east of the country died in a fire caused by a fight between inmates.

burs-jt/cb/des/mlr/dw

G.Dominguez--TFWP