Santo Domingo: Frustration grew Friday in the Dominican Republic as families of some of the 222 people killed in a nightclub roof collapse three days earlier waited for their loved ones’ bodies to be identified.
Dozens of desperate relatives waited in tents at the forensic morgue in Santo Domingo, the capital city where the Jet Set club’s roof caved in on hundreds of people gathered to see merengue singer Rubby Perez in the early hours of Tuesday.
Perez was on stage when disaster struck, and the 69-year-old was given a sendoff Thursday at the National Theater attended by President Luis Abinader and the singer’s daughter Zulinka, who had escaped the calamity alive.
Many other families, though, still await closure before they can start the grieving process following the Caribbean nation’s worst tragedy in decades.
“It is distressing, it is something you cannot imagine... the wait for the bodies is exasperating,” cried Yuni Garcia, who lost her brother, a club security guard, but has yet to recover his corpse.
The president’s office had earlier put the final death toll at 221, with 189 people pulled alive from the rubble of the popular nightclub now reduced to mounds of twisted steel, zinc and brick.
But a woman injured in the collapse has died after being sent to a hospital, the national health agency announced on Friday evening.
Aerial images of the site showed a scene resembling the aftermath of an earthquake, with a gaping hole where the club’s roof had been.
A video posted on social media showed the venue, which could hold 1,700 guests, suddenly plunged into darkness while Perez was singing, followed by crashing sounds and screams.
’Days of uncertainty’
Waiting at the morgue Friday was Esperanza Dominguez, who told AFP she had yet to find her missing relative’s face in photos of the dead being circulated by forensic teams working to identify the victims.
“I am worn out, I am going crazy because... of the many things I have seen,” she said near a large screen displaying the names of identified victims.
Fany Martinez, 46, waited for news on her sister who lived in Spain and was in Santo Domingo on a visit.
“We have been waiting for many days, many days of uncertainty... It has been very hard, it has been very difficult for us,” she said.
The extent of the tragedy has outstripped capacity.
Health Minister Victor Atallah said Thursday that “no pathology institute has the capacity to handle so many bodies so quickly.”
He had vowed, however, that “no one will be left unidentified... We are going to move every last stone that needs to be moved.”
Authorities said that by Friday, 191 autopsies had been done. They vowed all will be completed by Friday, and victims’ remains will be returned to their families by 2:00 am on Saturday.
Some reported errors, however.
“They gave us a body that wasn’t hers,” said a distraught Julio Alberto Acosta, who lost his stepdaughter in the tragedy.
“They gave us a bag and we said we had to open it to see if it was her, but it wasn’t... We want them to give us the right one so her mom can see her and go to bury her.”
The preliminary victims list included a Haitian, an Italian, two French citizens and, according to the US State Department, “several” Americans.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to Abinader Friday “to express his deepest condolences,” department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.
The victims also included two retired Major League Baseball players and a provincial governor.
What, why, how
Twelve extra forensic pathologists were brought on board to aid in the identification process, according to the health ministry.
The mayor’s office had provided six funeral homes with 170 coffins free of charge.
The government has extended an initial three-day national mourning period for another three days to Sunday and announced the creation of a special commission of national and foreign experts to determine the cause of the disaster.
Hundreds of rescuers, aided by sniffer dogs, have worked tirelessly since Tuesday to pull survivors from the rubble.
They called off the search for live victims late Wednesday and shifted their focus to recovering the dead.
Abinader on Friday pledged to find out “what happened, why it happened, how it happened.”
Frustrated families await news days after 222 killed in Dominican club disaster
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Frustrated families await news days after 222 killed in Dominican club disaster
- Aerial images of the site showed a scene resembling the aftermath of an earthquake, with a gaping hole where the club’s roof had been
- The president’s office had earlier put the final death toll at 221, with 189 people pulled alive from the rubble
US and Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending the war but territorial disputes remain
US and Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending the war but territorial disputes remain
- Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured, an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected
KYIV: The United States and Ukraine have reached a consensus on several critical issues aimed at bringing an end to the nearly four-year conflict, but sensitive issues around territorial control in Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland, along with the management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, remain unresolved, Ukraine’s president said.
Volodymyr Zelensky spoke as the US showed the 20-point plan, hammered out after marathon talks in Florida in recent days, to Russian negotiators. A response is expected from Moscow on Wednesday, Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president briefed journalists on each point of the plan on Tuesday. His comments were embargoed until Wednesday morning. The draft proposal, which reflects Ukraine’s wishes, intertwines political and commercial interests to safeguard security while boosting economic potential.
At the heart of the negotiations lies the contentious territorial dispute concerning the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, known as the Donbas. This is “the most difficult point,” Zelensky said. He said these matters will be discussed at the leaders level.
Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70 percent of Donetsk.
In a bid to facilitate compromise, the United States has proposed transforming these areas into free economic zones. Ukraine insists that any arrangement must be contingent upon a referendum, allowing the Ukrainian people to determine their own fate. Ukraine is demanding the demilitarization of the area and the presence of an international force to ensure stability, Zelensky said.
How the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest plant in Europe which is under Russian occupation, will be managed is another contentious issue. The US is proposing a consortium with Ukraine and Russia, with each party having an equal stake in the enterprise.
But Zelensky countered with a joint venture proposal between the US and Ukraine, in which the Americans are able to decide how to distribute their share, presuming it would go to Russia.
“We did not reach a consensus with the American side on the territory of the Donetsk region and on the ZNPP,” Zelensky said, referring to the power plant in Zaporizhzhia. “But we have significantly brought most of the positions closer together. In principle, all other consensus in this agreement has been found between us and them.”
A free economic zone compromise
Point 14, which covers territories that cut across the eastern front line, and Point 12, which discusses management of the Zaporizhzhia plant, will likely be major sticking points in the talks.
Zelensky said: “We are in a situation where the Russians want us to leave the Donetsk region, and the Americans are trying to find a way so that it is ‘not a way out’ — because we are against leaving — they want to find a demilitarized zone or a free economic zone in this, that is, a format that can provide for the views of both sides.”
The draft states that the contact line, which cuts across five Ukrainian regions, be frozen once the agreement is signed.
Ukraine’s stance is that any attempt to create a free economic zone must be ratified by a referendum, affirming that the Ukrainian people ultimately hold the decision-making power, Zelensky said. This process will require 60 days, he added, during which time hostilities should stop to allow the process to happen.
More difficult discussions would require hammering out how far troops would be required to move back, per Ukraine’s proposal, and where international forces would be s tationed. Zelensky said ultimately “people can choose: this ending suits us or not,” he said.
The draft also proposes that Russian forces withdraw from Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kharkiv regions, and that international forces be located along the contact line to monitor the implementation of the agreement.
“Since there is no faith in the Russians, and they have repeatedly broken their promises, today’s contact line is turning into a line of a de facto free economic zone, and international forces should be there to guarantee that no one will enter there under any guise — neither ‘little green men’ nor Russian military disguised as civilians,” Zelensky said.
Managing Zaporizhzhia power plant
Ukraine is also proposing that the occupied city of Enerhodar, which is connected to the Zaporizhzhia power plant, be a demilitarized free economic zone, Zelensky said. This point required 15 hours of discussions with the US, he said.
For now, the US proposes that the plant be jointly operated by Ukraine, the US and Russia, with each side receiving dividends from the enterprise.
“The USA is offering 33 percent for 33 percent for 33 percent, and the Americans are the main manager of this joint venture,” he said. “It is clear that for Ukraine this sounds very unsuccessful and not entirely realistic. How can you have joint commerce with the Russians after everything?”
Ukraine offered an alternative proposal, that the plant be operated by a joint venture with the US in which the Americans can determine independently how to distribute their 50 percent share.
Zelensky said billions in investments are needed to make the plant run again, including restoring the adjacent dam.
“There were about 15 hours of conversations about the plant. These are all very complex things.”
A separate annex for security guarantees
The document ensures that Ukraine will be provided with “strong” security guarantees that mirror NATO’s Article 5, which would obligate Ukraine’s partners to act in the event of renewed Russian aggression.
Zelensky said that a separate bilateral document with the US will outline these guarantees. This agreement will detail the conditions under which security will be provided, particularly in the event of a renewed Russian assault, and will establish a mechanism to monitor the ceasefire.
This mechanism will utilize satellite technology and early warning systems to ensure effective oversight and rapid response capabilities.
“The mood of the United States of America is that this is an unprecedented step toward Ukraine on their part. They believe that they are giving strong security guarantees,” he said.
The draft contains other elements including keeping Ukraine’s army at 800,000 during peace time, and by nailing down a specific date for ascension to the European Union.
Elections and boosting the economy
The document proposes accelerating a free trade agreement between Ukraine and the US once the agreement is signed. The US wants the same deal with Russia, said Zelensky.
Ukraine would like to receive short-term privileged access to the European market and a robust global development package, that will cover a wide-range of economic interests, including a development fund to invest in industries including technology, data centers and artificial intelligence, as well as gas.
Also included are funds for the reconstruction of territories destroyed in the war.
“Ukraine will have the opportunity to determine the priorities for distributing its share of funds in the territories under the control of Ukraine. And this is a very important point, on which we spent a lot of time,” Zelensky said.
The goal will be to attract $800 billion through equity, grants, loans and private sector contributions.
The draft proposal also requires Ukraine to hold elections after the signing of the agreement. “This is the partners’ vision,” Zelensky said.
Ukraine is also asking that all prisoners since 2014 be released at once, and that civilian detainees, political prisoners and children be returned to Ukraine.
