Despair when the death number rises

Hundreds of rescuers in the Dominican Republic are searching for the night to survive from a roof collapse in the capital in the capital, Santo Domingo.

At least 113 people were killed and over 150 were injured in the incident, which happened shortly before 01:00 local time (05:00 GMT) on Tuesday at the Jet Set Club, employees said.

Hundreds of guests were in the popular place present at a concert by the singer of Merengue Rubby Pérez.

Perez, as well as the former baseball player at Octavio Dotel Octavio, and a provincial governor, are among those who have been confirmed dead.

Mobile phones recorded inside the club, which is checked by the BBC, shows Perez on stage singing, while the man’s record can be heard to talk.

“Something fell from the ceiling,” says the man’s record, while his finger can be seen pointing to the roof.

At the footage, Perez can be seen looking at the area indicated by the man.

Less than 30 seconds later, the noise can be heard and the recording burns while a woman is heard “Daddy, what happened to you?”

It is not clear how many people were in the popular place, but the estimates range between 500 and 1000 people.

Emergency workers have demolished one of the walls of the club to better reach those who are still buried under the ruins.

Relatives, desperate for the news of their missing loved ones, hold vigils at the scene.

Among them was the daughter of Perez Zulinka, who is a supporting singer in her band Merengue.

She described how she was on stage, singing with her father when the tragedy unfolded.

Zulinka said she was rescued by her husband, who protected her with his body when the roof collapsed, telling her that he should do it “to be there for our son.”

She managed to crawl from under the ruins and her husband also made him alive.

However, her 69-year-old father remained trapped for hours.

According to Zulinka, he survived after the collapse and managed to direct the workers in emergencies until his location.

“They found him singing, he started singing to hear him,” she told the local media.

But around 5:00 pm local time, more than 16 hours after the tragedy, Zulinka was informed by rescue workers in the place that her father had died before they could release him.

Later, the manager confirmed his death.

Nelsey Cruz also survived the initial impact of the falling debris and was among the first to raise the alarm – calling directly to the President of the Dominican Republic.

The first call 41-year-old governor of the province of Monte Christie, placed while she was injured in the debris, was by President Luis Abinader, asking him to send emergency services to save those around her, who were also seriously injured.

Only after she called the President, Nelsey Cruz called her brother, the seven-time Baseball League from the All-Star League Nelson Cruz, their father said.

Later, she died in a hospital from injuries she received from falling glass.

Octavio Dotel, a former baseball owner of Major League, is also among the dead after being pulled by the debris.

The 51-year-old was rescued alive but died on his way to a hospital.

It is not yet clear what caused the roof of Jet Set to collapse.

Previously, the club was a cinema and was turned into a music place, hosting regular dance music concerts on Monday night.

The concerts attracted people of all ages and on the day of the collapse, there were a number of athletes, celebrities and politicians.

President Abinader has announced three days of national mourning.