A massive Generali billboard partially collapsed this Monday morning from the top of the Torre Hadid, located within the modern CityLife complex in Milan, sparking tension in the city’s financial district.
The incident, which took place in the early hours of the day, prompted authorities to cordon off a wide security perimeter, evacuate the building—home to more than 2,000 Generali employees—and temporarily close both the Tre Torri metro station on the M5 line and the CityLife Shopping District.
Eyewitnesses reported hearing “a very loud crash” moments before witnessing the metallic structure—standing at 15 meters tall and popularly known as “the red hat” due to its shape and location—detach partially and dangle precariously 175 meters above ground level.
Installed in 2018 through a complex operation involving helicopters that transported 170 tons of steel, the billboard proudly displays Generali’s logo and spans the entire width of the skyscraper. According to Marco Grampella, an engineer with the Milan fire brigade, the collapse was caused by the failure of one or more tubes supporting the structure’s reticular framework. “The network of beams suffered a structural failure at one of its nodes, which triggered the partial collapse of the entire structure,” he explained.
Although the billboard remains unstable, firefighters assured that it is unlikely to fall vertically into the void. In the event of a total detachment, it would instead crash onto the building’s rooftop terrace. The current priority is to assess its stability in order to determine whether repairs are feasible or if a complete removal is necessary.
The exact causes of the structural failure are still under investigation. Authorities have ruled out strong winds as a factor, noting that no significant gusts were recorded at the time of the incident. However, they did point out that the recent high temperatures in Milan might have weakened the metal framework.
“We still consider this a structural issue. One of the tension node connections collapsed, but we cannot confirm that heat was the primary cause,” the firefighters commented, leaving the hypothesis open.
In an official statement, Generali noted that the incident was promptly managed, with the affected area secured and no injuries or damage to nearby structures reported.
Firefighters estimate that the evaluation process will take one to two days, after which they will determine the definitive safety measures.
The CityLife complex, a symbol of contemporary architecture in Milan, was designed by renowned architects Arata Isozaki, Daniel Libeskind, and Zaha Hadid, and hosts some of the country’s most important corporate offices.
