POMPEI – A workplace accident bearing similarities to a recent fatal incident in Naples occurred in Pompei on Monday, though with less severe consequences. Two telecommunications workers sustained critical injuries after plunging over ten meters from an elevated lift basket while installing telephone equipment near the railway station.
The Torre Annunziata Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the cause of the fall, with preliminary findings pointing to the collapse of the hydraulic arm supporting the basket. The victims—aged 35 and 43, from Pozzuoli and Caivano respectively—were working at a height of 12-15 meters. One worker reportedly landed on train tracks. Both suffered grave injuries and were rushed to Naples’ Mare Hospital before being transferred to Cardarelli Hospital and Castellammare di Stabia Hospital, where they remain in guarded condition.
Prosecutor Nunzio Fragliasso’s inquiry will prioritize reconstructing the incident’s dynamics and examining compliance with safety protocols, equipment installation standards, and machinery functionality. Notably, both workers wore helmets and safety harnesses.
Trade unions condemned recurring safety violations, particularly during summer. CGIL Naples-Campania stressed that “safety prevention must be a non-negotiable priority, unbound by profit motives.” CISL Naples Secretary Melicia Comberiati cited seasonal “improvised worksites flouting regulations,” while UIL’s Giovanni Sgambati attributed the incident to “haste and profit-driven negligence.” Naples Prefect Michele di Bari, visiting the site, vowed intensified inspections, declaring: “Work is sacred but demands maximum safety.”
In a related development, Naples prosecutors notified four suspects—a construction firm owner, lift supplier, building administrator, and site safety coordinator—of potential manslaughter charges over Friday’s Naples lift collapse that killed three workers, two of whom were unregistered laborers. A vigil will be held at that accident site tonight, with autopsies scheduled for Tuesday. Investigators also obtained prior court records involving the Naples employer, including a 2015 case where a worker was paralyzed after a fall; footage from that incident showed employees retrofitting safety barriers post-accident.
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