What we know about the Dominican nightclub collapse and its victims
CNN
More than 200 people died after the roof of the popular Jet Set nightclub collapsed in the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo, this week in one of the Caribbean country’s deadliest tragedies.
More than 200 people died after the roof of the popular Jet Set nightclub collapsed in the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo, this week in one of the Caribbean country’s deadliest tragedies. Footage from the scene early Tuesday morning showed how a celebratory event turned into a disaster. Beloved merengue singer Rubby Pérez is first seen serenading the crowd, accompanied by his orchestra. Moments later, the club’s disco balls begin to sway before the roof suddenly collapses. Screams and crashing sounds can be heard for several seconds before the video cuts out. The deadly incident claimed the lives of several prominent Dominicans, including at least two former Major League Baseball players and Pérez, sending shockwaves throughout the country as investigators frantically seek its cause. Here’s what we know: The collapse killed at least 221 people and dozens more were rescued from the rubble, Dominican officials said as it was announced Thursday that crews had completed the days-long search for survivors.

More than two decades ago, on January 24, 2004, I landed in Baghdad as a legal adviser, assigned an office in what was then known as the Green Zone. It was raining and cold, and my duffle bag was thrown into a puddle off the C-130 aircraft that had just done a corkscrew dive to reach the runway without risk of ground fire. Young American soldiers greeted me as we piled into a vehicle, sped out of the airport complex and then along a road called the “Highway of Death” due to car bombs and snipers.












