Italy: Romanian worker dies after tower under restoration by Edilerica & Picalarga collapses in Rome, amid alleged "poor safety standards", incl. cos. non responses
On 4 November 2025, a medieval tower in Rome collapsed while it was undergoing renovation, leaving several workers trapped under the debris. One of the them was a Romanian worker who remained trapped for 11 hours before being rescued, but later died from his injuries.
According to reports, the restoration was being carried out by Edilerica and Picalarga, companies hired by the council.
Authorities stated that the building’s safety conditions had been verified, but speculation has grown that its stability may have been weakened either by a recent earthquake or by the construction of a nearby underground station.
Italy's largest union, CGIL, blamed the incident on "poor safety standards" and called for urgent improvements in workplace safety conditions.
In a healthy country, Octav, aged 66, wouldn’t have found himself on a construction site performing demanding, intense and dangerous tasks to earn a living. All of this must change.Natale Di Cola, Heads of CGIL's Rome and Lazio unit
After the incident, prosecutors opened an investigation into culpable disaster and manslaughter.
In November 2025, the Business & Human Rights Centre reached out to Edilerica and Picalarga to request their responses to these allegations, but the companies did not respond.