Octay Stroici, 66, was trapped under rubble for 11 hours after the Torre dei Conti collapsed

An elderly construction worker has died after part of an 800-year-old tower collapsed in central Rome during restoration work, sending tonnes of stone and dust cascading onto the street near the Roman Forum.

The victim, identified by Italian media as 66-year-old Octay Stroici, a Romanian national, was trapped for more than 11 hours beneath the rubble of the Torre dei Conti, a medieval landmark that has stood for centuries just yards from the Colosseum.

The collapse happened on Monday morning as crews worked on the historic 30-metre tower to remove asbestos and carry out repairs. At 11:30am, sections of the upper structure gave way, prompting an immediate emergency response from firefighters, police and soldiers.

Four construction workers were inside the site when the incident occurred. Three were rescued soon after — one unhurt and two with injuries requiring hospital care. Stroici, however, remained trapped inside the cracked tower.

Firefighters battled through hazardous conditions as they tried to reach him. As they scaled extended ladders and dug through fallen masonry, a second collapse struck just after 1:00pm, shaking the site and covering rescuers in clouds of dust and debris. The dramatic moment sent onlookers fleeing as stones and metal rained down from the damaged facade.

According to reports in La Stampa, Stroici was conscious and speaking with emergency teams after the first collapse, and rescuers managed to provide him with an oxygen mask as they cleared rubble by hand. Specialized units joined the operation late in the afternoon, using cranes, vacuum hoses and listening equipment to pinpoint his location.

After hours of painstaking work, firefighters succeeded in pulling Stroici free at around 10:30pm local time. He was taken by ambulance to Policlinico Umberto I hospital in Rome, but despite intensive efforts to revive him, he was pronounced dead shortly after midnight.

In a statement, the hospital confirmed: “At 11:05pm, Octay Stroici arrived at the Emergency Room in cardiac arrest. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation had already been initiated at the site. Medical staff continued CPR for approximately an hour, but spontaneous cardiac activity was not restored. His death was confirmed at 12:20am.”

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her condolences following the tragedy. “I express deep sorrow and condolences, on behalf of myself and the government, for the tragic loss of Octay Stroici, the worker who was killed in the collapse of the Torre dei Conti in Rome,” she said. “We are close to his family and colleagues at this time of unspeakable suffering.”

The cause of the collapse is still under investigation. The Torre dei Conti, built in 1238 by Riccardo Conti, a relative of Pope Innocent III, has long been considered one of the city’s most significant medieval towers. Over the centuries, it has survived earthquakes, wars and urban redevelopment — though it has required frequent reinforcement due to subsidence and structural weakness.

Experts have speculated that vibrations from nearby construction work or hidden flaws in the ancient masonry may have contributed to the collapse. The tower had been surrounded by scaffolding for months as part of a long-term restoration project funded by Rome’s municipal government.

Eyewitnesses described a chaotic scene at the moment of the second collapse, with sirens blaring and dust filling the air. “It was like an explosion,” one passerby told local television. “The firefighters shouted for everyone to move back, and then part of the tower just fell again.”

Rome’s mayor, Roberto Gualtieri, has ordered a full safety review of ongoing restoration projects in the city, calling the incident “a grave tragedy that should never have happened.”

As investigators continue to examine the wreckage, tributes have poured in for Stroici, remembered by colleagues as a skilled, hardworking craftsman with decades of experience in construction.