The incident took place at around 1 a.m., when the animal was seen running along the tram tracks toward Plaza de España and even reaching Plaza San Felipe. At that hour, numerous people looked on in astonishment as the wild boar made its way through the pedestrians.
Surprise, nerves and even laughter mixed among those who witnessed the scene. Some took out their mobile phones to capture the moment, while others chose to remain completely still, following instructions from officers and tram security staff.
"I was absolutely terrified," one witness admits with a laugh in one of the videos shared on social media. The recording also captures those present recalling the moment when police asked citizens to remain motionless. "Stay still!" they recount amid laughter.
Another witness says that tram security staff asked them not to move from the stop while the animal passed just a few meters away. "And the wild boar going right past us," the witness recalls, still astonished. Among the anecdotes from that unusual early morning was also that of a person who, apparently unaware of what was happening around them, continued looking at their phone as the animal passed by.
POLICE AND FIREFIGHTERS TRACK THE WILD BOAR
The animal’s unexpected presence triggered an operation involving several patrols from the Local Police, National Police and Zaragoza Fire Department, which tried to track its movements and guide it out of the urban area.
According to police sources, the first alert was received at around 12:40 a.m. by the Central Operations Unit, when several citizens reported that a wild boar was running near Asalto and Jorge Cocci streets. Several police units were dispatched to the area with the aim of cornering the animal and helping it leave the city. The Fire Department and its animal rescue and recovery unit were also notified.
However, the wild boar continued its unusual run through Zaragoza’s streets, passing places including Aznar Molina, Camino de las Torres, Cesáreo Alierta, Plaza de los Sitios, San Clemente and Paseo de la Independencia. It fled through some of the city’s busiest areas in the early hours of a festive night, to the surprise of people enjoying the Pilar celebrations.
The episode nevertheless ended in an incident. The animal eventually entered a public establishment on Calle Temple, where it charged at a woman and caused minor injuries. According to the same police sources, the venue’s manager, assisted by several customers, managed to subdue and kill the wild boar to prevent it from injuring anyone else. The FCC service later removed the animal’s body using a vehicle specifically intended for this type of operation.
THE ORIGIN OF THE WILD BOAR’S INCURSION INTO ZARAGOZA REMAINS A MYSTERY
For now, it is not known where the wild boar entered the urban area, although it may have come from farmland, the riverbank or pine forests on the outskirts of the Aragonese capital. Its presence in central Zaragoza is part of an increasingly common phenomenon: wild animals entering urban areas, particularly wild boars, which are attracted by the possibility of finding food in dumpsters, gardens and other places containing food waste.
Even so, the most unusual aspect of the incident was the timing of its incursion: a Saturday during the Pilar festivities, in the heart of Zaragoza and with the streets full of people enjoying the night. The surprising and unusual scene led to chases, frights, laughter and numerous anecdotes among witnesses, although it ended with a woman suffering minor injuries and the animal’s death.
