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Memorials were taking spot Thursday for a merengue prima and others killed erstwhile a cement extortion collapsed astatine a fashionable nightclub successful the Dominican Republic, arsenic the fig of dormant surged to 221 and crews completed their hunt for bodies.
Memorials held Thursday arsenic families proceed to hunt for answers
The Associated Press
· Posted: Apr 10, 2025 4:29 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago
Memorials were taking spot Thursday for a merengue prima and others killed erstwhile a cement extortion collapsed astatine a fashionable nightclub successful the Dominican Republic, arsenic the fig of dormant surged to 221 and crews completed their hunt for bodies.
Mourners clad successful achromatic and achromatic streamed into Santo Domingo's National Theater, wherever the assemblage of Rubby Perez laic wrong a closed coffin. Perez had been performing connected signifier astatine the packed Jet Set nine aboriginal Tuesday erstwhile particulate began falling from the ceiling and, seconds later, the extortion caved.
President Luis Abinader and his woman Raquel Arbaje arrived astatine the theatre and stood beside Perez's coffin for respective minutes. Some mourners doubled implicit successful tears arsenic a signaling of Perez singing the nationalist anthem played. Renowned Dominican instrumentalist Juan Luis Guerra was among those gathered to wage their respects.
Perez, 69, had turned to euphony aft a car mishap near him incapable to prosecute his imagination of becoming a nonrecreational shot player. He was known for hits including Volvere, which helium sang with Wilfrido Vargas's orchestra, and Buscando tus besos as a solo artist.
Cause of illness unclear
Just blocks from the memorial, dense instrumentality began withdrawing from the tract wherever Jet Set erstwhile stood and rescue crews packed up their equipment.
Meanwhile, a radical of prosecutors arrived.
It is inactive unclear what caused the extortion to illness oregon erstwhile the gathering was past inspected. The authorities has said it volition motorboat a thorough investigation, and the club's owners person said they are co-operating with authorities.
WATCH | Roof collapses during concert:
Dozens killed successful nightclub extortion illness successful Dominican Republic
Juan Manuel Mendez, manager of the Center of Emergency Operations, broke down arsenic helium addressed reporters.
"Thank you, God, due to the fact that contiguous we accomplished the astir hard task I've had successful 20 years," helium said, moving the microphone distant from his look arsenic helium cried. Other officials patted him connected the backmost arsenic helium continued, "Please forgive me," earlier passing the microphone to an service official.
Officials said 189 radical were rescued from the rubble. More than 200 were injured, with 24 of them inactive hospitalized, including 8 successful captious condition.
"If the trauma is excessively great, there's not a batch of time" near to prevention patients successful that condition, said Health Minister Victor Atallah. He and different doctors said immoderate of the injured suffered fractures to the skull, femur and pelvis.
Families frustrated
Many radical person been anxiously waiting for quality of their loved ones, increasing frustrated with the drip-drip of accusation provided by hospitals and the country's forensic institute.
At slightest 146 bodies person been identified, authorities said Thursday.
Maria Luisa Taveras told TV presumption Noticias SIN that she was looking for her sister.
"We person gone everyplace they person told us," she said, her dependable breaking.
Taveras said the household has dispersed out, with a comparative stationed astatine each infirmary and astatine the National Institute of Forensic Pathology. Dozens of radical waited astatine the institute Thursday, wearing look masks and complaining astir the odor arsenic they demanded the merchandise of their loved ones' bodies.
"The odour is unbearable," said Wendy Sosa, who has been waiting since Wednesday greeting for the assemblage of her cousin, 61-year-old Nilka Curiel Gonzalez. Sosa told The Associated Press by telephone that the concern determination was "chaotic," and that officials had acceptable up a refrigerated instrumentality to grip the measurement of bodies being delivered.
She wept arsenic she described her relative arsenic gracious, authentic and "very empathetic."
'No words'
Victims identified truthful acold see erstwhile MLB players Octavio Dotel and Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera; and Nelsy Cruz, the politician of the northwestern state of Montecristi whose member is seven-time Major League Baseball All-Star Nelson Cruz.
Dotel volition beryllium buried Thursday successful Santo Domingo. Hundreds of radical attended his aftermath connected Wednesday, including Hall of Famer David Ortiz, formerly of the Boston Red Sox. Ortiz said the fig of radical who attended Dotel's aftermath spoke volumes.
"He was a idiosyncratic whom everyone loved," Ortiz told reporters. "It's precise hard, precise hard, truly."
MLB Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez attended different aftermath Thursday.
"There are nary words to picture the symptom we are each feeling," said Martinez, adding that helium knew much than 50 of those who died. "Life is but a breath."
Also killed was a retired United Nations official; saxophonist Luis Solis, who was playing onstage erstwhile the extortion fell; New York-based manner decorator Martin Polanco; the lad and daughter-in-law of the curate of nationalist works; the member of the vice curate of the Ministry of Youth; and 3 employees of Grupo Popular, a fiscal services company, including the president of AFP Popular Bank and his wife.
More than 20 victims came from Haina, Rubby Perez's hometown, conscionable southwest of Santo Domingo.
On Thursday, the politician held a communal wake, mounting up 10 stands for coffins beneath a banner that read: "Haina bids farewell to her beloved children with immense sorrow."
Among the mourners was Juancho Guillen, who mislaid his woman 3 months agone and whose brother, sister and brother-in-law died astatine Jet Set.
"This household is successful shock, is devastated," helium told Noticias SIN. "We're practically dormant too."