Rome's Colosseum reopens to visitors after worker’s death

Tourists flocked to Rome's Colosseum as it reopened on Saturday (September 26), following a three-day closure after the death of a maintenance worker at the 2,000-year-old amphitheatre.

The monument was shut to visitors on Wednesday (September 23) after Andrea Moretti, a 22-year-old technician, died in an overnight accident. He had fallen several meters while installing a new lighting system.

"Tourism is important, but ultimately a life was lost," said 23-year-old Alejandra Montes from Mexico, who appreciated the culture ministry's choice to close Italy's most-visited tourist attraction as a mark of respect.

The Colosseum was the biggest amphitheatre in the Roman Empire and was used to host gladiator fights, executions and animal hunts. It attracted nearly 15 million visitors in 2024, according to the latest ministry data.

Initially, only part of the monument was closed, but Italy's largest union, the CGIL, protested that this was an inadequate response to the fatal accident.

Unions were already concerned about safety. Last November, a Romanian worker died after being trapped for hours under the rubble of a partly collapsed medieval tower near the Colosseum.

Camera & Editing: Veronica Altimari; Production: Roberto Mignucci, Matteo Negr/Reuters