ROME (AP) — Firefighters worked to rescue a worker trapped for hours beneath rubble in a medieval tower that partially collapsed during renovation work in the heart of Italy’s capital Monday, critically injuring another worker.
Rescuers faced a complex task as the structure continued to give way as they tried to get near the trapped worker, who officials said was alive, through a first-floor window, forcing their retreat on telescopic aerial ladders in a cloud of smoke. Another approach on two ladders was also aborted, and a drone sent up in their stead.
As dusk approached, firefighters lifted on a crane used giant tubes to suck rubble out of the second-floor window. They continued the work into the night.
Rome’s top law enforcement official, Prefect Lamberto Giannini, said there were “signs of life” from the trapped worker, and that firefighters had managed to give him some protective cover during an earlier rescue attempt.
Three workers were rescued unharmed after the initial midday collapse, said firefighter spokesperson Luca Cari. Another worker, age 64, was hospitalized in critical condition; RAI state TV reported he was conscious and had suffered a broken nose.
No firefighters were injured in the ongoing operation.
The Torre dei Conti was built in the 13th century by Pope Innocent III as a residence for his family. The tower was damaged in a 1349 earthquake and suffered subsequent collapses in the 17th century.
Giannini called the situation “very complex” and said that other equipment was being brought in.
“It will be a very long operation. We must try to save this person while mitigating the enormous risks to the people who are trying to save him,” Giannini told reporters.
Hundreds of tourists had gathered to watch as firefighters used a mobile ladder to bring a stretcher to the upper level of the Torre dei Conti during the first rescue attempt. Suddenly, another part of the structure partially collapsed, sending up a cloud of debris and forcing firefighters to quickly descend on the ladder.
The first collapse struck the central buttress of the structure’s southern side, and caused the partial collapse of an underlying sloped base. The second collapse impacted part of the stairwell and roof, cultural heritage officials said in a statement.
Queen Paglinawan, 27, was attending to a client in a gelato parlor next door when the tower first started coming apart.
“I was working and then I heard something falling, and then I saw the tower collapse in a diagonal way,″ Paglinawan, 27, told The Associated Press as yet more rubble crashed down.
The tower, which has been closed since 2007, is undergoing a 6.9 million euro (nearly $8 million) restoration, that includes conservations work, the installation of electrical, lighting and water systems and a new museum installation dedicated to the most recent phases of the Roman Imperial Forum, officials said.
Before the latest phase was started in June, structural surveys and load tests were carried out “to verify the stability of the structure, which confirmed the safety conditions necessary” to proceed with work, including asbestos removal, officials said. The current work, carried out at a cost of 400,000 euros ($460,000), was just about complete.
Italian prosecutors arrived at the scene as the rescue operation was underway, and were investigating possible charges for negligent disaster and negligent injuries, Italian media reported. It is common in Italy for investigations to begin while an event is ongoing and before possible suspects are identified.
German student Viktoria Braeu passed by the scene during the firefighters’ initial rescue attempt.
“We were just at the Colosseum … and we were just walking to get some food. … And then we were like, ‘It’s probably not long until it’s going to go down,’ and then it just started erupting,” said Braeu, 18.
“My thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to the person currently fighting for his life under the rubble and to his family, for whom I sincerely hope that this tragedy will have a positive outcome,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said in a statement Monday evening.
“I would like to thank all the law enforcement officers, firefighters, and rescue workers who are intervening with courage, professionalism, and dedication in this extremely difficult situation.”
Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri and Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli were at the scene, but did not speak to reporters.
In a related development, the Italian Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador after reports that the Kremlin spokeswoman had said that everything in Italy would “collapse” as long as the Italian government continued to support Ukraine in the war with Russia.
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