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Five suffer injuries in Pamplona bull run

A PACKED running of the bulls swollen by weekend crowds at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, Spain, left five people with minor injuries but no one was gored yesterday, the day after the first fatality for 14 years.

One man had a lucky escape when he confronted a lone bull that had broken away from the pack after a fall but he was only rolled around the ground and not caught by its horns.

The fifth bull run in the eight-day San Fermin feast took place the day after a 27-year-old man was gored to death, the first since 1995.

Virgen del Camino Hospital spokesman Dr Fernando Boneta said five people suffered head injuries and were admitted for treatment but none was seriously hurt.

The runs start at an overnight enclosure about 850 meters away from the city's bullring where the animals face matadors and almost certain death each afternoon of this ancient fiesta.

The pack races along the often damp cobblestone course accompanied by six steers, each with a large clanking bell around its neck, whose function is to try to keep the group trotting together.

The greatest danger happens when the pack splits up, leaving bulls disoriented and irritated by crowds composed of thousands of adrenaline-charged -- and often alcohol-fueled -- thrill seekers.

Despite the large number of runners and the separation of one bull from the pack, yesterday's animals entered the ring in two minutes 52 seconds, a reasonably fast time.





 

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