There was fear this morning in Rome where, shortly after 11:00, part of the Torre dei Conti, currently under renovation, collapsed.
According to initial reports , several people were trapped under the rubble. Two injured people were treated on site, while a 64-year-old worker was taken to San Giovanni Hospital with a critical traumatic brain injury. "At the moment, one person is trapped, but we have evidence that he is still alive . Every effort is underway to try to save him, which is the priority, but it is a complex operation," said Rome Prefect Lamberto Giannini.
Traffic has been halted on Largo Corrado Ricci to facilitate the intervention of firefighters and other emergency vehicles.
Shortly after 12:00 PM, another avalanche of debris fell from the roof, creating another enormous cloud of dust, engulfing the firefighters who were working to extract the worker still trapped in the rubble. All firefighters are reportedly unharmed.
The Rome Public Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation into the case for negligent disaster. The proceedings are being coordinated by Deputy Prosecutor Antonino Di Mai and Prosecutor Mario Dovinola.
Judicial police officers from the work-related accident unit are at the scene of the collapse. Investigators will obtain technical assistance to reconstruct the events and determine the causes of the collapse.
"I was outside waiting tables. I'm in shock. I heard the sound of falling debris, looked up, and there was smoke, and I saw one of the workers fall." This is the dramatic account of a waitress at the restaurant on Via del Colosseo, facing the collapsed tower on the Imperial Forum. "They're workers who come here every morning. I'm shocked," she says, her voice breaking.
(Unioneonline/vl)