The Tomatina festival, which is described as the world's largest and messiest food fight, was celebrated on Aug 30 with full enthusiasm in Spain. This year, the iconic fiesta celebrated its 72nd anniversary.
Nearly 22,000 people participated in an event celebrating the festival near Valencia, Spain. According to reports, the revelers threw, squished and splatted around 165 tons of the tomatoes in an hour in the annual event.
The tomatoes were brought in huge trucks in six large trucks and from there it was distributed in smaller trucks. Revellers come from different parts of the world to participate in this Tomatina festival.
In 1945, the Tomatina started its first phase when the local people brawling in the street at a folk festival grabbed tomatoes from a greengrocer's stall and let loose. Then in 2002, Spain's tourism secretary named Tomatina a "festivity of international tourist interest" due to its popularity. The Tomatina has inspired similar celebrations in Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile and the United States.
However, this year, the security was heightened amid fears of the potential risk of a terrorist attack, following the horrifying events in Barcelona earlier this month. The festival saw around 700 police, firefighters, paramedics and volunteers working, who were there to ensure safety, with police cordons and bollards in place to prevent an attack. In this gallery, IBTimes Singapore has compiled a series of images from the Tomatina Festival 2017.
