El Espinal, Tolima

Espinal is a Colombian city located in the Department of Tolima, 146 km southwest from Bogotá. It is the second most important city of the department and is the rice capital of the center of the country. It is flanked by the Magdalena and Coello rivers. El Espinal is known for the manufacture of typical musical instruments and its cuisine is known for tamales and the suckling pig, which are the typical dishes of the region. It has a total length of 231 km², an urban area of 4.26 km², and a rural area of 212.74 km².

The town is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Espinal.

Climate

Despite its low elevation, El Espinal has a temperate climate with abundant rainfall from March to May and from October to November. The increased solar radiation during these months due to the position of the sun increases temperatures in the jungle and favors the formation of storms in the mountainous areas. In contrast, the more dry seasons of the year are from January to February and from July to August. Frost occurs in rural areas, mist is extremely rare, and 10 days out of the year are foggy. Historians report that between the years 1930 to 1940 there were many hailstorms.

Geography

El Espinal is located on the plains of the Upper Magdalena region at 1800 meters above sea level and surrounded by the Central and Eastern mountain ranges of the Colombian Andes.

2022 bullring collapse

On June 26, 2022, several boxes of a bullring collapsed, causing the balance of approximately hundreds of people injured and 4 dead. The images of the moment in which the flimsy wooden structures crowded with people collapse have given an account of the disaster that occurred during a ''corraleja'', as the popular festivals are known in the country in which the public goes down to the arena to face several bulls. In a ''corraleja'', unlike other styles of bullfighting, the bulls are not killed at the end of the fight, but due to the informal nature of the event, it can lead to serious accidents.

Then president-elect, Gustavo Petro (who in his presidential campaign spoke against shows involving animal, including bullfighting), spoke on Twitter, stating that "I hope that all the people affected by the collapse of the Plaza de El Espinal can get out of their wounds", and that "this had already happened in Sincelejo" while shared an aerial video showing the collapse of the plaza. The outgoing president, Iván Duque, who was in Portugal at the time, lamented the "terrible tragedy" and stated that he would request an investigation into the events. The outgoing Vice President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucia Ramirez also regretted the events, and criticized the lack of security in the place. The governor of Tolima, Ricardo Orozco, confirmed that among the 4 deceased were two women, a man and a minor, while the injured numbered between 30 to close to 300. He also anticipated that he will request "the suspension of all these kinds of parties hich arethe corralejas”, alleging that the events “attack life” and encourage “animal abuse”. The issue of bullfighting has been controversial and problematic in Colombia in recent years.

The tragedy opened a new debate on the legality and safety of the coralejas and bullfights throughout the country, as well as animal cruelty.

Economy

Its economy is based on agriculture, especially rice and other products such as cotton, sorghum, soybean, maize, and tobacco among others. It also includes enterprises from other sectors, including mills, which generate a high percentage of employment in the city.

References

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Municipalities of Tolima Department