By Sam Spade, News and Java Correspondent
Published: April 08, 2025
Former Major League Baseball star Octavio Dotel has died after a nightclub ceiling collapsed on him and spent his final moments screaming for help. Dotel, 51, is among at least 44 other people who died following the collapse at the Jet Set club in Santo Domingo 12:44am local time Tuesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, he was reported as having been rescued from the rubble after screaming for help.
But Dominican newspaper Diario Libre said Dotel arrived at Armed Forces Central Hospital with no vital signs and was subsequently declared dead.
'The death of former Major League Baseball player Octavio Dotel has been confirmed,' the publication wrote in an update on X.
The Emergency Operations Center said at least 144 people have been rushed to local hospitals in the Dominican capital.
Dotel was sitting near the front of the stage during merengue singer Rubby Pérez's live performance at Jet Set nightclub when a section of the ceiling plummeted around 12:44 am Tuesday.
Footage shared on social media showed Pérez, who had two hits in Billboard chart lists, performing on stage when parts of the ceiling came crushing down on the dancing crowd and the performers.
Pérez's' daughter and band vocalist, Zulinka Pérez, told reporters that the legendary artist remained trapped under the rubble and that he sang as a way to draw the attention of rescue crew workers.
First responders are continuing to search for survivors by utilizing thermal cameras that can detect victims' body heat signatures.
Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader confirmed those dead include Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the province of Montecristi, and sister of another former Major League Baseball player, Nelson Cruz.
In a video, a male clubgoer pointed toward an area of the nightclub away from the stage and noticed that something was wrong with the ceiling.
'Oh, something fell from above, you see? Something fell from the ceiling,' the guest said.
A woman, who appeared to be with the man recording the video, could be heard screaming, 'Dad, what happened to you?'
A separate video showed multiple guests looking at a lighting structure that was attached to the ceiling when the roof came crashing down.
Music promoter Carlos Bautista, who survived the accident, told reporters that he was not sure how he was able to escape through a section of a wall that was so small that only could fit.
He said there were at least 850 guests in attendance at the weekly Monday party - a staple of Jet Set, which first opened its doors in 1973 as a restaurant and club.
The nightclub was briefly shut down due to a fire on July 25, 2023 after its electricity room was struck by lightning.
In a statement, Jet Set said it is cooperating with the ongoing investigation.
