Bull attacks Spain: Six people gored to death by out-of-control bulls since May in horrifying incidents

The first incident took the life of a 57-year-old man during a bull-running festival in Spain. The victim was violently gored twice by a bull in the groin and pelvis areas while participating in a fiesta in a town just 45 km from Valencia.

In a desperate attempt to escape, he sought refuge in the doorway of a house but was still viciously attacked through the metal bars, sustaining injuries so severe that they led to his death in the hospital. The 57-year-old man who died was a local resident and an avid fan of the festivities.

In July, a 37-year-old Spanish man was gored by a bull, according to the local government from Navarre. The incident occurred on the first day of an annual bull run as part of the San Fermin festival in the northern Spanish town of Pamplona - which attracts tourists from across the world. The incident also saw six people injured including an American tourist.

At the end of August a 51-year-old man died in a bull run event in Mesones when he slipped on a fence while trying to escape from the bulls. On Saturday 7 September, a young 20-year-old man was killed during a bull-running festival in El Casar in the province of Guadalajara in Castille-La Mancha, Spain. He had been taking part in the long-held Spanish tradition and was in the bullring when the animal ran at him and drove its horn into his chest.

Most recently, one man was gored to death and three other seriously injured, including a three-year-old girl, when a rampaging bull smashed through a safety barrier. The terrifying incident happened in Pantoja in Toledo, Spain, during its patron saint festivities.

On Sunday 29 September, a 60-year-old woman, who was wearing a red dress, was knocked unconscious as she hit her head on the ground after being attacked by a bull. The woman, who has not yet been named, is said to have suffered a gory injury to an armpit, but she tragically died as she was being rushed to hospital. The incident happened during an annual festival in the Spanish town of Enguera, located close to the east coast city of Valencia.

All of the tragic incidents and deaths by bulls during bull-running festivals in Spain have led to more calls for the event to be banned. Many activists argue that these events are dangerous and cruel.

Bulls are let loose on the streets, and participants run ahead of them in a tradition that takes place in over 1,820 Spanish towns each year, according to a recent survey by animal rights organisations AnimaNaturalis and CAS International. The event remains extremely popular in the Valencian region which covers the provinces of Castellon, Valencia and Alicante.