Spain’s eastern town of Buñol turned crimson on Wednesday as an estimated 22,000 revelers spent a messy hour pelting one another with 120 tonnes of overripe tomatoes in the 80th edition of La Tomatina. Fire-truck-style cannon blasts signalled the start and end of the controlled mayhem, during which participants were asked to squash each tomato before throwing to soften its impact. This year’s fruit was trucked in from Extremadura under a €53,000 municipal contract and grown expressly for the event, organisers said, noting it would otherwise have been discarded because it does not meet retail standards. The festival adopted the slogan “Tomaterapia” to underline a spirit of recovery after severe floods hit the region in late 2024. La Tomatina began in 1945 as an impromptu street scuffle, was banned under General Francisco Franco and revived in the 1980s, steadily becoming a magnet for international tourists. Municipal officials estimate the day now generates about €300,000 for Buñol’s coffers and wider benefits for the Valencia province through transport, food and lodging sales. Safety rules require protective goggles and prohibit glass bottles, while local crews hose down streets and communal showers rinse participants once the tomato cannon falls silent. Apart from two cancellations during the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival has run uninterrupted for four decades, cementing its status as one of Spain’s most iconic summer spectacles.