He explained that the building—formerly the El Portal cinema—was purchased by his family in the late 1980s and has undergone no major structural alterations since, aside from leveling the sloped theater floor.

For three decades, the club’s ceiling consisted of plaster panels that routinely absorbed moisture from air-conditioning leaks and blocked drains. As the panels became saturated, they grew heavy and fell; the solution, he said, was simply replacing the damaged sections. On the night of the tragedy, an employee had just swapped out several wet panels when the collapse occurred.

Espaillat was away that evening—he usually spent Mondays at the club—and learned of the disaster from his sister, who was trapped under the rubble alongside their mother. He insists that, had any warning or preventive measure been possible, he would have acted immediately. “The first one who wants to know what happened is me,” he said, emphasizing his personal stake in uncovering the cause.