Rescue teams are trying to free a worker buried under rubble in Rome after a medieval tower collapsed during renovation work.
Italy’s national fire department spokesman Luca Cari said they were trying to get the man, who was still stuck hours after the initial collapse, out alive, “but the situation is complex because of the risk of further collapses”.
The worker had displayed “signs of life” and had been given some protective cover during one of the rescue attempts, Rome’s top law enforcement official, prefect Lamberto Giannini, said.
Other equipment was being brought in to help what Mr Giannini called a “very complex” situation.
Predicting a “very long operation”, he said they “must try to save this person while mitigating the enormous risks to the people who are trying to save him”.
Another worker was seriously injured when the Torre dei Conti, near the Colosseum in the heart of Italy’s capital, collapsed twice on Monday.
Mr Cari said one worker was in hospital in a critical condition, while three other workers were pulled out unharmed.
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Hundreds of tourists watched as firefighters used a mobile ladder to bring a stretcher to the upper level to rescue the worker from the 29-metre (95 ft) tower, where he was trapped by the first collapse, some time before noon.
But, during the attempt, another part of the structure partially collapsed, sending up a cloud of debris and forcing firefighters to quickly retreat.
‘I saw the tower collapse’
Large clouds of dust filled the area after the incidents, along with the sound of collapsing masonry, leaving the structure standing, but with significant internal damage.
Gelato shop worker Queen Paglinawan, 27, said she heard the two loud noises from the town in quick succession.
She said: “I was working and then I heard some like falling, and then I saw the tower collapse in a diagonal way.”
German student Viktoria Braeu, 18, said: “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.’
Four firefighters later approached the first-floor window on two mobile ladders, but were quickly pulled back when dust emerged.
Drone used to see worker
No firefighters were injured in the ongoing operation.
A drone was then flown up to check the condition of the trapped worker.
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Torre dei Conti (Tower of the Counts) has not been used since 2006 and was being worked on as part of a four-year renovation project due to end next year, Rome city authorities said.
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The surrounding area was closed off to pedestrians during the work.
Located on Via dei Fori Imperiali, the tower was built in 1238 by Pope Innocent III for his family and was originally twice as high, but was scaled down after damage from earthquakes in the 14th and 17th centuries.
