One man has died after being attacked by his buffalo at the on-going Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival 2017 in the northern city of Hai Phong.
A man is gored to death by his buffalo at the Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival 2017 on July 1.
The incident happened on Saturday morning when Dinh Xuan Huong, 47, was at the fighting ground where his buffalo was competing in the qualifying round of the Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival 2017.
After being led to its rival, Huong's buffalo suddenly came back to attack him. Huong was gored and fell to the ground, where the buffalo hit him again. The man was then rushed to hospital, but died later the same day of serious injuries.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has urgently asked the organising board of the Do Son Buffalo Festival 2017 to carry out safety checks and consider halting the festival if necessary.
Speaking with the media about the accident, chairman of Do Son District People's Committee, Hoang Xuan Minh said that the festival had been carefully prepared to ensure safety for visitors and buffalos' owners and this was a rare accident.
"There have been no such incident reported in the history of the festival," Minh confirmed. "We was very sorry for this."
The annual Do Son Buffalo Festival which has been recognised as a national intangible heritage since 2013, is listed among major cultural festivals by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The final round of this year's festival is scheduled on September 28.
