It was three o'clock in the afternoon when, suddenly, the roof of this church fell down. It is the church of St. Joseph of Carpenters. At that time there were five tourists inside who were unharmed.
It was not necessary to call the security forces as the loud noise immediately attracted the attention of Officer Lucio Granini, the first one to enter to check for injuries.
LUCIO GRANINI
Local Police Instructor of Rome
“We heard a huge rumble. We went down and entered the church. Inside the Mamertine prison there were people, both church personnel and tourists, who we made leave quickly. The vault was destroyed and the whole ceiling had fallen down.”
In this church, located next to the Roman forum, weddings are usually celebrated, and there was one scheduled for this Saturday.
FR. DANIELLE LIBANOLI
Bishop of St. Joseph of Carpenters Church
“This is a small church and because of its location many couples want to celebrate their wedding here. Let's thank God, because this very Saturday there was a wedding planned and if it had happened that day we would be here crying for them all.”
Following the collapse of the Genoa Bridge on 14th August, Italy has decided to cut off access to many bridges that have not passed security checkpoints, with this collapse the restrictions may also be extended to some buildings.
