A 56-year-old tour guide, Giovanna Maria Giammarino, collapsed and died from a suspected heart attack while guiding at the Colosseum during extreme heat. The Certified Tour Guide Association (AGTA) called the death evidence of the physical toll of guiding and urged changes to summer opening hours so tours occur in cooler early mornings or later evenings. The Colosseum currently opens 8.30am–7.15pm from late March to late September. AGTA proposed running the Colosseum area from 7am to 8.15pm from June through August and said earlier openings and later closings would protect visitors, guides, and workers amid intensified heat from climate change.
The association said that from the beginning of June to at least the end of August, the opening hours of the Colosseum area should run from 7am to 8.15pm. For three years, we've been asking for the opening of the whole park to be brought forward to 7am and for closing to be postponed by an hour, said AGTA. These changes would benefit the public health of everyone: visitors, guides and other workers.
Giovanna Maria Giammarino, who was 56, collapsed in the amphitheatre at 6pm on Tuesday. Despite the efforts of tourists and the emergency services, she could not be revived and died at the scene. Her death came weeks after the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations warned that extreme heat is no longer an exception; it is a new reality that demands attention, adaptation, and solidarity within our profession.
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