A roof that collapsed in a popular nightclub in the Dominican Republic and killed 232 people this month had filtration problems for decades and had been fixed several times with the plaster, according to its owner.
Antonio Espailt, who is also director of the Jet Set nightclub in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, spoke on Wednesday with the local television station Telesistème in his first interview since the April 8 disaster.
Espailt told a journalist with El Día News Program that the employees had added a new plaster to the roof a few hours before the collapse.
He noted that the plaster had fallen several times over the years for reasons including water which has filtered the club’s air conditioning units. However, Espailt said that no one had ever inspected roof or water filters.
“We have always bought plasterboard. Always,” said Spaillat, who spoke moderately throughout the interview by almost an hour.
A spokesperson for Spaillet did not send a message for comments looking for an interview with him.
Espailt said that he had learned the collapse when his sister called him under the debris, trapped with hundreds of others participating in a concert by the beloved singer of Merengue, Rubby Pérez, who was one of the people killed.
“To the families of the victims, I mean I’m sorry. I’m really sorry,” said Espailt. “I am completely destroyed.”
‘We were all surprised’
Espailt said he was 6 years old when his mother founded the legendary club 52 years ago. The club then moved to a space occupied by a closed cinema and stayed there for 30 years until the collapse.
He said there were six air conditioning units on the roof, plus three water tanks. An electric factory was installed in an adjacent room, not on the roof, he added.
Every six to eight years, a specialized team has watered the roof, with the last waterproofing made for about a month before the collapse, he said.
The heavy Woofers who exploded music at Jet Set, known for his merengue festivals held every Monday, were on the ground, he said.
Espailt said that if there was something he could have done to avoid collapse, he would have done so.
“There was no warning, nothing. We were all surprised,” he said.
‘I’m going to face everything’
The Dominican government has created a committee which includes local and international experts responsible for investigating the collapse.
According to Espailt, around 515 people were at jets when the roof fell on the crowd.
Within 53 hours of disaster, the crews saved 189 survivors. Dozens of others have been hospitalized.
The 232 victims include seven doctors; a retired UN official; The former players of the MLB Octavio Dotel and Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera; and Nelsy Cruz, governor of the province of Montecristi and sister of the seventh time more base in the major baseball league Nelson Cruz,
At least three proceedings have been filed.
Espailt, who said that he had generally attended the parties of Merengue de Jet Set at Jet Set, was in Las Vegas for an agreement when his sister called.
“How can a roof collapse?” He remembers when he returned to the Dominican Republic.
Espailt said that he had not immediately visited the site when he arrived because the officials were worried about his security, noting that people on the scene were angry.
He said that he hadn’t slept much since the disaster and that he had spoken to the families of his employees and some of the victim’s relatives.
“I’m going to face everything,” he said. “I’m not going anywhere.”
An in progress in progress
The investigation into what caused the collapse could take a few months and raised questions on infrastructure security through Santo Domingo and beyond.
No government agency is currently responsible for inspecting private companies in the Dominican Republic, although President Luis Abinader announced last week that the new legislation should change this.
Yamil Castillo, structure engineer and vice-president of the Society of Engineers of Puerto Rico, said that water leaks can be extremely damaging and should be taken care of immediately.
Castillo, which is not involved in the study of collapse, warned that water infiltrates the different materials that make up a roof can increase it, in addition to anything that is placed on the roof, including air conditioning units.
Salted air also causes corrosion and damage caused by the roof, he said.
“These leaks should have been corrected,” said Castillo, adding that the replacement of the plaster was not enough.
