Owner of Dominican Republic nightclub apologises for fatal roof collapse

The owner of Jet Set, the Dominican Republic nightclub where a fatal roof collapse killed more than 200 people earlier in April, has spoken out for the first time since the incident.

Antonio Espaillat spoke to local TV station Telesistema last week, where he explained that the club had suffered filtration problems for years before the tragic incident.

The incident took place in the early hours of Tuesday, April 8, during a concert at the popular Santa Domingo club. Hundreds were gathered inside watching a performance from merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who died in the incident.

According to local officials, 231 people were killed, and a further 180 were injured.

Espaillat explained that the ceiling was made of plaster tiles, which often fell from the roof due to filtration issues, but were repeatedly fixed over the years.

“We always bought plasterboard. Always,” he said (via NBC News). He added that new plasterboard was added to the club’s ceiling just hours before the collapse.

According to Espaillat, the club had never received a structural review from local authorities, and that no inspection of the club’s water filtration systems had taken place.

Espaillat apologised to the families of the victims, saying that he’s “going to face everything”. He explained: “I’m not going anywhere. To the families of the victims, I want to say I’m sorry. I’m very sorry. I am completely destroyed.”

A family of one of the victims has become the first to press charges against Jet Set’s owners. Other families of the deceased have said that they will also file lawsuits against the owners, per the BBC.

The wife and parents of a local police lieutenant who died in the incident, Virgilio Rafael Cruz Aponte, said that they will bring manslaughter charges against the venue’s owners, also accusing the local government of neglecting safety checks of the venue.

An investigation into the incident is ongoing, and is expected to take several months, according to officials. Espaillat said that he is fully co-operating with the police investigation.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag’s Associate Digital Editor, follow her on Twitter