40 000 pitch for tomato pelting
2004-08-25 19:47
Bunol - A record 40 000 people thronged to this small eastern Spanish town on Wednesday to take part in the annual "tomatina" - a festival of tomato-hurling that leaves people and buildings covered in red juice, pips and skin.
Five trucks delivered 130 tons of the fruit for the hour-long combat which attracted foreign tourists, among them British, French, Argentinian and Japanese visitors, as well as locals, many wearing a minimum of clothing.
Tradition dicates that on the last Wednesday of August at 11:00 the trucks move down the central street of Bunol, normal population 20 000, to the town square depositing their load as they go.
On the stroke of noon, the signal is given and for the next 60 minutes people hurl tomatoes at each other until a gunshot signals the end of the fiesta.
The cleaning-up phase follows, with combatants washing the signs of battle away in the local river or under hundreds of temporary showers.
No injuries this year
The facades of buildings are hosed down, emerging brighter than ever after their acid bath.
The festival has its origins in a battle between friends in the 1940s.
The Valencia region in which Bunol is situated grows many kinds of fruit and vegetables and is regarded as Spain's market garden.
In the past, people have been injured during the tomato fight, but no casualties were reported this year.