A traditional bull-running festival in Mexico turned deadly over the weekend after two men were killed and at least 11 others were injured when massive fighting bulls charged through crowded streets.
The horrifying scenes unfolded Saturday during the 72nd annual Huamantlada in Huamantla, a city in the Mexican state of Tlaxcala. Thousands of spectators and thrill-seekers packed the streets as 21 fighting bulls were released onto a specially designated route through the city.
The event is often compared to Spain’s famous Running of the Bulls in Pamplona and is sometimes promoted as one of the world’s largest bull-running celebrations.
But this year’s festival quickly turned tragic.
One of the victims was identified as 29-year-old Juan Manuel Filomeno Herrera, a local resident who was caught by one of the bulls during the chaos.
According to reports, Herrera was attempting to get away from a charging bull when he fell. The animal then attacked him, leaving him with devastating injuries.
Health officials said Herrera suffered severe head trauma and a major chest injury that perforated his left lung. He later died from his injuries.
Disturbing video from the festival reportedly showed a bull tossing a man as people nearby screamed and rushed to intervene.
A second victim, 57-year-old Luis Xolocotzi Ramírez, was also seriously injured during the event.
He suffered severe head trauma and other major injuries and was initially listed in critical condition.
Because of the seriousness of his condition, Xolocotzi Ramírez was airlifted to a specialized hospital in the State of Mexico for treatment.
Despite doctors’ efforts, he later died, raising the festival’s death toll to two.
At least 11 other people were injured during the bull run.
Nine of the victims initially required hospitalization, according to local health officials.
Among those hurt was an American woman, who was reported to be in stable condition following the incident. Some reports identified her as a 24-year-old woman from Texas who was thrown into the air by a bull.
The bulls involved in the event reportedly weighed more than 990 pounds each and were around five years old.
They came from several different cattle ranches and were released onto a circuit created specifically for the festival.
Tlaxcala Health Secretary Rigoberto Zamudio Meneses described the 2026 Huamantlada as the most accident-filled edition of the festival in at least five years.
The two deaths were also particularly notable because the festival had reportedly gone eight years without a fatality.
The Huamantlada has been held for decades and is deeply tied to the region’s bullfighting culture. The event traditionally draws huge crowds willing to get dangerously close to the animals as they race through barricaded streets.
This year, however, scenes of participants being knocked down, gored and tossed by the bulls have once again raised questions about the risks surrounding the controversial tradition.
With two people dead and more than a dozen others injured, the 2026 event has become one of the deadliest editions in recent memory.
