An American who suffered injuries after impaling themselves on a metal spike at the Colosseum in Rome is reportedly recovering, according to multiple media outlets.
The 47-year-old victim is an American citizen living in Taiwan, who was on vacation in the Italian city and had climbed a fence at the famous ruins, before falling and injuring themselves in front of dozens of other tourists.
The accident took place around 5 p.m. local time on May 2.
The tourist “could no longer detach himself from the fence and was losing a lot of blood” and “started screaming in pain until he lost consciousness and remained lifeless, hanging from the fence,” according to the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero.
The tourist’s “deep wound” was treated on the scene with sedatives and it took more than 20 minutes for an ambulance crew, a Carabinieri patrol and a Finance Police team to free the injured person from the fence.
At San Giovanni Addolorata Hospital, the injured American tourist was immediately treated with surgery and the wound was closed “with over 80 stitches”, reported Il Messaggero.
