At least 18 people are dead after the roof of a nightclub in the Dominican Republic collapsed, officials said Tuesday.

More than 120 people were taken to hospitals via ambulance after the incident at the Jet Set night club in Santo Domingo, according to an Instagram post from the national police. Search and rescue operations to find people in the rubble are still underway in the National District on Tuesday morning, Juan Manuel Méndez, the director of the Emergency Operations Center, told reporters.

Dominican merengue singer Rubby Perez was set to perform at the club Monday night, according to

Instagram posts from the club. President Luis Abinader traveled to the site Tuesday to supervise the rescue efforts and offer his condolences to the victims, footage shared by police shows.

“Our city wakes up to a terrible tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub. My deepest sympathy goes out to the families still waiting for news of their loved ones,” Santo Domingo Mayor Carolina Mejía de Garrigó said in a statement on

X.

Former MLB player among those trapped in the rubble, reports say

Former Major League Baseball pitcher Octavio Dotel was among those trapped in the rubble after the roof of the Jet Set nightclub collapsed, according to reports. Dotel, 51, is a Santo Domingo native who played for 13 teams over 15 seasons after making his debut with the New York Mets in 1999.

Mike Rodriguez, a broadcaster and former analyst for the Chicago Cubs, said on X that Dotel was inside the club during Perez’s performance, citing unnamed sources. Dotel was trapped under debris but is believed to be alive, Ministry of Sports and Recreation spokesperson Héctor Gómez said on

X

, citing a report from sports journalist Dionisio Soldevila.

Contributing: Steve Gardner, USA TODAY