Collapse at Pompeii Renews Fears About Site.

Mount Vesuvius preserved the city of Pompeii in ash nearly 2,000 years ago, but current neglect of this Unesco World Heritage site in southern Italy is taking its toll. A courtyard column of a Roman house collapsed on Thursday, the latest in a series of crumbling artifacts at the site, Reuters reported. Last year there were other collapses, including part of what is known as the House of Gladiators. The damage played a role in a no-confidence vote against Culture Minister Sandro Bondi earlier this year. Although Mr. Bondi survived the vote, he ended up resigning in March. ''This is a torment without end,'' Luisa Bossa, a lawmaker from the leftist opposition Democratic Party, told Reuters. ''We have been complaining for three years, but the country's most important archaeological area continues to fall apart. The truth is that the site has been left alone for years and now, a bit at a time, we are paying the price.'' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]