Calogero Rizzuto, director of Syracuse Archaeological Park, dies of coronavirus

Calogero Rizzuto, the 65-year-old architect and director of the Parco Archeologico di Siracusa, Eloro e Villa del Tellaro, died after contracting COVID-19. He was admitted to Umberto I hospital in Syracuse on March 12, the first confirmed case in the city, and transferred to intensive care. Despite initial signs of recovery, he succumbed to the virus. Born in Sambuca di Sicilia, Rizzuto had a long career as an official in the Sicilian Regional Department of Cultural Heritage, working as an architect for the Soprintendenza of Syracuse and later Ragusa, and at the Museo Archeologico di Camarina. Last summer he was appointed director of the new archaeological park, which includes the UNESCO World Heritage site of Noto (designated in 2002), Palazzolo Acreide, and Buscemi. The park was one of the last to complete Sicily's system of archaeological parks, originally conceived by the late Sebastiano Tusa, who died in a plane crash in Ethiopia. After Rizzuto's hospitalization, the ASP8 of Syracuse traced his contacts and tested his family, who were negative. However, amid heightened tension, a complaint has been filed with the Syracuse Public Prosecutor's Office alleging medical malpractice and incompetence. This week is considered the most dangerous for Sicily in the pandemic, with hospitals on alert for a predicted surge in cases.