El Espinal is located on the plains of the Upper Magdalena region at 322 meters above sea level and surrounded by the Central and Eastern mountain ranges of the Colombian Andes.

[3] 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.

[3] 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.

[4] Then president-elect, Gustavo Petro (who in his presidential campaign spoke against shows involving animal, including bullfighting),[5] 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.

[3][7] The outgoing Vice President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucia Ramirez also regretted the events, and criticized the lack of security in the place.