(NEXSTAR) — Former MLB pitcher Octavio Dotel is reportedly among the dozens who have died after the roof of an iconic nightclub collapsed early Tuesday morning in the Dominican Republic.
As of early Tuesday afternoon, the death toll had climbed to 44, authorities in the capital city of Santo Domingo said. More than 160 others were initially said to have been injured when the roof collapsed during a merengue concert.
Among those in attendance were politicians, athletes, and others.
Dotel, who spent 15 seasons as a relief pitcher in the MLB, was initially reported to have been injured. However, local outlets Diario Libre and Noticias SIN, as well as MLB insider Héctor Gómez, reported shortly after 1 p.m. ET that Dotel was pronounced dead after being pulled from the rubble.
The 51-year-old native of the Dominican Republic started his MLB career with the New York Mets in 1999. He then spent nearly five seasons with the Houston Astros before being sent to the then-Oakland Athletics. Before his 2013 retirement, Dotel would also pitch for the New York Yankees, the Kansas City Royals, the Atlanta Braves, the Chicago White Sox, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Colorado Rockies, the Toronto Blue Jays, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers.
He helped the Cardinals to a World Series win in 2011 and recorded 109 saves over his MLB career.
Also among the victims was Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the northwestern province of Montecristi and sister of seven-time MLB All-Star Nelson Cruz. She had called President Luis Abinader at 12:49 a.m. saying she was trapped and that the roof had collapsed, First Lady Raquel Abraje told reporters. Officials said Cruz died later at the hospital.
Two other former MLB players — Henry Blanco, who played for the Seattle Mariners and the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Esteban Germán, who played for the Royals and Oakland — were reportedly at the nightclub last night but left before the roof collapsed, according to local outlet La Nación.
It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the roof to collapse.
Jet Set issued a statement saying it was cooperating with authorities. “The loss of human life leaves us in a state of deep pain and dismay,” it said.
President Abinader wrote on X that all rescue agencies are “working tirelessly” to help those affected.
“We deeply regret the tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub. We have been following the incident minute by minute since it occurred,” he wrote.
At one hospital where the injured were taken, an official stood outside reading aloud the names of survivors as a crowd gathered around her and yelled out the names of their loved ones.
Meanwhile, dozens of people gathered at the National Institute of Forensic Pathology, which projected pictures of the victims so their loved ones could identify them.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The post Former MLB pitcher dies after being pulled from rubble of nightclub roof collapse: reports appeared first on WHNT.
