British tourist, 54, 'fighting for his life' in hospital with 70% burns to his body after explosion at B&B in Rome

The tourist Grant Paterson, 54, was rescued on Saturday morning from the rubble of a three-storey building in the Monteverde area of the Italian capital. He was rescued from under heaps of rubble with horrified neighbours revealing they heard an "insane bang" which sounded like a bomb going off. The Italian city of Rome was rocked by an explosion at around 9am on Sunday morning (23 March).

A huge blast erupted inside a B&B apartment which quickly caused the two-storey building in the city’s Monteverde neighbourhood to collapse. The Brit was said to have been staying in the apartment since mid-March based on his social media. Mr Paterson, from East Kilbride in Lanarkshire, is understood to be receiving treatment for severe burns at Rome's Sant'Eugenio hospital.

The blast is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak. It left the home crumbled into pieces as pictures show the devastating aftermath.

Emergency crews rushed to Monteverde to help rescue anyone trapped under the built-up debris which had formed on the road. The man was rushed to hospital suffering from burns to 70 per cent of his body, authorities said.

A witness later told Rai television news: “I was stopped at the traffic lights at the intersection when I heard an explosion. It was like a bomb, a terrifying bomb.”

Roberto Gualtieri, the mayor of Rome, has since visited the ruins and said he is now working with police and civil protection officials to investigate what happened. He said: “Initial findings seem to indicate that it was a gas leak, perhaps from a cylinder that exploded, causing very significant damage.

“There is one injured person. He is reportedly a guest of an accommodation facility, and investigations are under way into the B&B.” No other injures have been reported.