Moments of panic this Monday morning in Rome when part of one side of the 13th century Conti Tower, in the center of the city, collapsed, raising a large cloud of dust that invaded the road, at that time full of tourists. “It was 11:24, I know this because I immediately started recording a video. I was taking orders from some tourists at the table on the terrace and suddenly a noise was heard, we ran away,” a waiter from one of the pizzerias opposite, on the other side of the street, tells EL PAÍS.
Rehabilitation work has been going on in the tower for months and the collapse has surprised several workers who were on the scaffolding installed in that part of the building. At midday the information is still confusing, but at least one of them has been trapped under the rubble. According to information from the emergency services, he is 66 years old, is conscious and is collaborating with the firefighters. There is also a seriously injured person, a 64-year-old man, taken to San Giovanni hospital with a skull trauma.
At least three other workers have already been rescued, with minor injuries, including some who had been isolated on the terrace located at the top of the tower and who have been evacuated by firefighters with an escalator. Rescue teams have also entered through one of the tower’s windows, searching for possible trapped people. In total, according to the Italian agency ANSA, there were 11 workers working at the site at that time.
An hour later, while firefighters were already working at the scene, a second collapse occurred, this time internal, but none of them suffered any damage. The authorities have expanded the security perimeter of the area, given the possibility that new collapses may occur or the tower may collapse completely.
The complex, an example of the medieval towers that the great Roman families built in that area, is located in Corrado Ricci Square, in the heart of the Roman Forum, located at the intersection of Via Cavour and the Avenue of the Imperial Forums. It measures about 29 meters high, although in reality its original height reached three times that, these towers were sometimes true skyscrapers of the time. Successive earthquakes reduced it until the contemporary era.
The surroundings of the building had already been delimited by a fence for months, due to the work, which has prevented pedestrians from passing near the tower at that time. However, the rubble has exceeded the valley and has reached the road. “At that moment people were passing by, but everyone ran away, luckily no one was hurt,” says a waiter from another of the restaurants in front of the scene of the incident.
The mayor of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, whose office is very close, on the other side of the Forum, in the Capitol, and the Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, who also has his offices very close, attended the place. The Rome Prosecutor’s Office has already opened an investigation to determine the causes and possible responsibilities of the accident. The work on the tower is part of the numerous restructuring works undertaken in Rome with European funds from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR).
