English tourist critical after fall

A YOUNG British man is in a critical condition after falling from the third-floor window of a backpacker hostel in Rome.

John Cummins, 22, from Sidmouth in Devon, suffered serious head and spine injuries and multiple broken bones after plunging from the M&J Hostel in the early hours of Monday.

Mr Cummins had apparently been out drinking before the incident

occurred at around 5.15am.

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A spokeswoman for the Umberto I Rome general hospital said: "The man had spinal and other injuries and a cerebral oedema.

"He is in a critical but not life-threatening condition. He had been drinking alcohol."

The M&J Hostel is in the city centre near the main railway station. It provides low-budget accommodation, with rooms starting at 9.99 euros (8.25) per night.

Police said officers had attended the hostel earlier the same morning when an argument broke out, but could not confirm if the two incidents were connected.

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A hostel worker said the incidents were not connected and described the fall as "an unfortunate accident". Italian newspapers suggested he had annoyed his roommates by lying on someone else's bed, then on the floor, and then on a windowsill.

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