A medieval tower undergoing renovation in central Rome partially collapsed Monday, leaving one worker trapped under rubble, authorities said.
Part of the Torre dei Conti collapsed just after 11:30 am (1030 GMT), sending rubble into the street and a thick white cloud of dust into the air.
"It's a very complex situation for the firefighters because there is a person trapped inside," Rome Prefect Lamberto Giannini told reporters.
The trapped worker, a Romanian national, was "conscious", the Romanian foreign ministry said.
Three other workers were evacuated from the site, one of them in a critical condition, a spokesman for the fire service told AFP.
The tower is in a busy area, just off the Imperial Forum and close to the Colosseum, Italy's top tourist site.
Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri and Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli were present as firefighters cordoned off the street and moved back crowds.
A second partial collapse of the tower about one and a half hours later sent up further billowing clouds of dust.
After the first collapse, firefighters managed to "put up some protection" around the trapped man, so when the second collapse occurred, "they obviously shielded him", Giannini said.
With dust still in the air, firefighters used cranes to reach tower windows, while a drone entered through another window for an inspection.
An AFP journalist witnessed the arrival of specialized search and rescue firefighter units.
One worker inside at the time of the first collapse told AFP he escaped from a balcony.
"It was not safe. I just want to go home," said the man, white dust covering his uniform, who gave his name as Ottaviano and his age as 67.
The Torre dei Conti, dating from the early 13th century, was being restored with European Union funds.
Prefect Giannini said the rescue operation would be long and difficult.
"It will be a very long operation because we have to try to save the person, but we also have to try to mitigate... the enormous risks faced by the people trying to carry out the rescue," he said.
"We hope the outcome will be good, but it is not easy."
Monday's collapses affected a buttress and part of the tower's base, then part of the stairwell and the roof, Rome's Directorate of Cultural Heritage said in a statement.
The phase of work launched in June 2025, which included asbestos removal, was practically complete.
The directorate said an analysis undertaken at the start of the renovations had shown "necessary safety conditions" for the work to go ahead.
The Italian government summoned Russia's ambassador after the Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman made a link between the accident and Russia's support for Ukraine.
"As long as the Italian government keeps uselessly wasting taxpayers' money, all of Italy will collapse, from the economy to its towers," said the Kremlin spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova.
Italy's foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, slammed Zakharova's remarks as "shameful, unacceptable".
