A Scottish tourist wrote an eerie Facebook post just days before suffering severe burns when a gas explosion destroyed his three-storey B&B in Rome.
Grant Paterson, 54, from East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, suffered serious injuries when the B&B in Monteverde, Rome, exploded around 8.30 am on Saturday.
He was pulled out of the ruins conscious but is believed to have suffered third-degree burns to 75% of his body, in line with local news reports.
Mr Paterson is known to be receiving treatment at Sant’Eugenio Hospital in the town.
Social media posts revealed the Scotsman arrived in Rome last week for a vacation and had visited famous sites comparable to the Colosseum and the Pantheon before the explosion.
He wrote: ‘Arrived in Rome, trains, planes, buses and foot… Accommodation is gorgeous. This needs to be a very good week … if I don’t get killed in some ungodly way…’
Mr Paterson had also posted about his visit to the Pantheon days before the accident, writing: ‘Genuinely a dream fulfilled….. I actually have desired to see the Pantheon since I used to be a toddler. So, so satisfied.’
Wellwishers have flooded his Facebook comments, with one local writing: ‘May you heal as soon as possible and will this story be just a nasty memory, and you’ll return to our beautiful Rome and we’ll welcome you with open arms.’
One other added: ‘I live in Rome and this terrible news saddens me very much. Mr Paterson was so relaxed and completely satisfied.
‘I hope it’s strong, surely Italian doctors will do all the things to provide him one of the best help possible.’
Roberto Gualtieri, the Mayor of Rome, visited the scene and told reporters he ordered a full investigation into the explosion.
He said: ‘The essential thing is that fortunately there are not any victims, although unfortunately one person was seriously injured.
‘It was a really loud explosion, a constructing collapsed and the wall of Villa Pamphili was also damaged.’
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: ‘We’re supporting the family of a British man who has been hospitalised in Italy and are in touch with the local authorities.’
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