Authorities reported that at least 27 people, including a provincial governor, were killed, and another 134 sustained injuries in the early hours of Tuesday when the roof of a nightclub in the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, collapsed.
Rescue teams were working to extract individuals still believed to be trapped beneath the debris, according to Juan Manuel Mendez, the head of the Dominican Republic’s emergency operations center.
Mendez did not provide an exact count of the number of people thought to have been inside the Jet Set nightclub, which is located near the coast.
President Luis Abinader confirmed that the deceased included Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the northern Monte Cristi province.
“We deeply regret the tragedy,” he wrote on X, adding that authorities were working tirelessly to recover the victims. “Our prayers are with the affected families.”
