Man dies after being gored by bull during festival in Spain

A 55-year-old Spanish man bled to death after being gored in the leg by a bull during a festival in which the animals are released into the streets, local authorities said Sunday.

The town hall of Onda, in the eastern Spanish province of Castellon, said in a statement that it would suspend Sunday's last day of bull-running following the goring on Saturday afternoon during the annual festival.

The local Levante news site said that the man was taken to a nearby hospital, but doctors couldn't save him.

It is the first known death during a running-of-the-bulls since the festivals returned to many towns across Spain after a pandemic-imposed pause. Despite the occasional casualties and growing opposition from animal rights groups, racing bulls or cows remains a popular tradition. Two other people were injured during a similar bull-run in another town, Levante reported.

The most well-known event internationally is Pamplona's San Fermín festival, which was held annually before the pandemic and boasted eight races on consecutive days through the northern city's narrow, cobbled streets. Its next edition is expected in July 2022, after a two-year hiatus.

A public debate over whether bull-running festivals should be banned has become more heated in recent years, Reuters reported. The animals let loose for the runs are generally used in bullfights later on the same day. Catalonia banned bullfighting in 2010, but in 2016, Spain's top court overruled the ban.