A 47-year-old American tourist living in Taiwan suffered a severe spinal injury after impaling himself on a fence surrounding the Colosseum in Rome. According to the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero, the man was attempting to climb the barrier, possibly for a better view of the nearly 2,000-year-old wonder of antiquity, when he fell and was impaled in the spine by a metal spike.
Dozens of bystanders reportedly watched in horror as the man screamed in pain, eventually losing consciousness while stuck on the fence. Witnesses immediately called emergency services. Italian police and paramedics arrived quickly, but it took more than 20 minutes to safely extract the injured man.
He was rushed to a nearby emergency room where doctors performed surgery. Medical staff closed the wound with more than 80 stitches. The tourist, who remained unable to speak for hours, was in serious condition at the hospital. He had only been in Rome for a few days on vacation with family and friends.
Fox News Digital reached out to Italy’s Civil Protection Department and national police for comment, but they did not choose to give a statement immediately following the accident.
