Majorca club unveiled new rooftop bar a DAY before terrace collapse (2024)

The Majorca nightclub and restaurant which collapsed last night, killing four people and injuring 16, had unveiled a new rooftop bar just one day earlier, it has been revealed.

Around 100 emergency responders raced to the Medusa Beach Club in the popular Playa de Palma on Thursday evening amid frantic calls for help and arrived to find a scene of utter chaos.

A terrace of the two-storey building is believed to have collapsed through to the basem*nt, with just the façade still standing, local media said.

Public television for the Balearic Islands reported that people were dancing on the terrace that collapsed below into the floor beneath, although this has not been officially confirmed.

Just a day before the floor caved in, the Medusa Beach Club social media team on Instagramposted a photo of their new rooftop bar with the caption: 'Totally different. New rooftop.'

Local media reported the three women and one man were killed in the disaster.

The man was named locally as Abdoulaye Diop, a Senegalese migrant living in Majorca and working as a nightclub doorman who made headlines on the island in 2017 by saving a man who was drowning in the sea at Playa de Palma.

He is thought to have stopped off at Medusa Beach Club, on the beachfront promenade, after leaving the gym.

A spokesman for Majorca's National Police this morning added the other three victims are a 23-year-old Spanish woman who worked at the club, and two German women in their 20s and 30s.

Reports overnight suggested as many as ten people were feared trapped under the rubble as desperate rescue operations continued, but town hall officials in Palma this morning confirmed the debris had been cleared with no one else stuck.

The total number of injured is now believed to stand at 16 and not 21 as officials had previously stated or 27 as well-placed sources said earlier in the evening.

Palma's Deputy Mayor Javier Bonet said this morning: 'We can now rule out the possibility there could be more victims.

'This morning around 2.30am firefighters finished the job of clearing all the rubble and concluded the rescue operation.

'It worked very well with total unity between health professionals, local and national police and firefighters.

'They acted in record time and I would like to thank all those involved because we are very proud of what they did.'

The bar is understood to be popular with British and German tourists, although details on the identities of those affected remain scarce.

Emergency crews told concerned locals gathering at the scene to remain silent so that rescue workers could hear sounds from trapped survivors.

Palma Town Hall has declared three days of mourning as rescue efforts continue.

Locals have likened the collapse to a bomb going off.

Raul Pursnani, owner of a shop called Moda Meena next door to Medusa Beach Club, said: 'I was leaving my shop and was outside when everything came down all of a sudden.

'The noise was very loud and the impact was massive. The first floor collapsed onto the one below.'

Eder Garcia, head of the Palma Fire Brigade, said from the scene overnight: 'The names of the victims including the survivors and their degrees of injury are known.

'There are several nationalities and what we know is that most are not from Palma.

'A lot of the names are foreign names but we don't know yet whether they include staff who were working there or whether they were visitors but we expect many will be tourists.'

He added: 'We received the first call around 8pm.

'The first floor terrace has collapsed, probably due to excess weight although it's still under investigation, and it's impacted on an arch below which has also come down and affected the basem*nt where there was a table football table and there were people eating.'

Psychology experts were brought in to support victims traumatised by the horrific events.

The Foreign Office said last night there are no reports that British nationals were involved in the incident.

A spokesperson said: 'We are aware of an incident in Palma, and there are currently no reports of British nationals having been involved. We remain in contact with the Spanish authorities.'

Residents have told how two storeys of restaurant and night club collapsed without warning at a popular night spot in Majorca.

A fire brigade crane and rescue workers were going through rubble at the Medusa Beach Club.

Emergency services finalising the search and rescue operations have told those witnessing them remain silent as crews continue their work.

'We ask you silence because we need silence to see if we hear someone,' a police spokesperson told local radio.

'The terrace has come down, probably due to excessive weight,' he said, adding that the causes are still being investigated.

One resident told MailOnline: 'It's terrible, two storeys collapsed and took everyone down with it.

'There were local people and tourists there. God help them.'

Tourists watched in horror from the beach in darkness as rescue workers from the Spanish fire brigade sifted through the rubble.

Rescue teams lifted huge pieces of masonry and concrete from the ruins.

Restaurants and bars adjacent to the collapsed building were forced to close but others nearby continued to play loud music and serve drinks.

Neighbours said they heard a loud noise followed by screams coming from the venue as the building collapsed, La Vanguardia reported.

Santiago Aranda, walking his dog with his wife at the time of the collapse, told Spanish outlet COPE's La Linterna: 'It's one thing to watch television and another thing is this and being there... I don't have words to describe it. It was an explosion, and we were in the street opposite.'

His voice trembling, he told how 'some ran in the opposite direction and others towards the dust' after the explosion.

Santiago told the outlet he stayed to help the wounded and 'get people out', assessing that '90 per cent' of those inside at the time were German, 'because of the screams, the wailing and the crying'.

Emergency services have not yet shared the identities of all of the deceased, and have neither confirmed nor denied whether tourists were involved.

But local media reported that one of the four people who have so far died following the collapse is Senegalese man Abdoulaye Diop.

Diop was a nightclub bouncer for Black Magic, a club just a three-minute walk away from Medusa.

First analyses suggest one of the terraces of the building may have collapsed, dragging the rest of the property down in on itself, according to the outlet.

Authorities were forced to call a crane company to help lift debris from the two-storey building with the extent of the casualties still unknown.

But there remain fears that efforts to remove the rubble could cause the remaining front of the building to topple back into itself.

Emergency services remained on the scene through dusk and into nightfall, working tirelessly to recover bodies and survivors, with seven so far reported to have been found in 'critical condition'.

At least seven fire engines were on site to assist rescue efforts, ladders lowered to provide access into the building.

And ambulance steamed towards the site, with local media reporting the carnage was given 'absolute priority'.

Authorities have also called on psychologists from the Official College of Psychology of the Balearic Islands to assist, as traumatised victims are pulled from the wreckage.

The injured are currently being evacuated through the back of the restaurant, facingTrasimé Street, where they are being treated.

Others have been taken to local hospital centres in Majorca, according to La Vanguardia.

Police sources have put the number of injured at at least 16.

Local emergency services, writing on Twitter/X, reported shortly before 11pm BST that four people were confirmed to have died, seven were very seriously injured, and nine were seriously injured.

A spokesman for a regional emergency response coordination centre said: 'We have activated an emergency response as a result of the collapse of the ceiling of a two-storey building in Avenida Cartago in Playa de Palma, where people are trapped.'

It was initially reported in Spain that a false ceiling could have collapsed, before being ruled out.

Playa de Palma is the beach area lying to the east of the Majorcan capital. It is especially popular with British and German holidaymakers.Around 3.2 million Brits travel to Majorca each year.

Investigators are still working to determine the exact cause of the accident.

Marga Prohens, president of the Balearic Islands, wrote on Twitter/X: 'Shocked by the information I received about the collapse of Platja de Palma.

'Sending all my affection and warmth to the families of the four people who lost their lives in this tragic incident and wishing the recovery of all the injured.

'Thanks to all the emergency services that have moved to the scene and continue to work there.'

'I am closely following the consequences of the terrible collapse that occurred on the beach of Palma,' Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on X.

Sanchez said he had spoken to local and regional authorities, adding the government is ready to help 'with all the means and troops that are necessary.'

'I want to send my condolences to the families of the deceased and my wish for a speedy recovery to the injured,' he said.

The president of the opposition Popular PartyAlberto Núñez Feijóo also expressed his condolences, writing on X: 'From the Popular Party we send our condolences to the affected families and our support to the emergency teams that continue working.

Both the PP andPSOE of the Balearic Islands agreed to suspend political campaigns for the upcoming European elections, scheduled for tomorrow, out of respect.