FEEL THE HEAT!

Incredible photos show dancers and fire-eaters leaping through flames during Spain’s dramatic Santa Tecla fire festival

Runners try and get as close to the firework-wielding demons and fire breathers as possible

By Sam Webb

19th September 2016, 4:44 pm

Updated: 19th September 2016, 5:23 pm

THESE jaw-dropping picture capture the fiery excitement of a bizarre religious festival in the Catalan region of Spain.

During the ancient Santa Tecla festival in Tarragona, a port city located in the northeast of the country, groups of ‘diables’ (devils) dress up as demons and set off fireworks clamped onto their pitchforks among the crowd – all while fire eaters light up the night sky.

The spectators wear thick clothes to protect themselves against small burns and attempt to get as close as possible to the devils in what is called a ‘correfoc’ – or ‘fire run’.

Less intrepid spectators watch from a short distance away, quickly retreating if the heat gets too much.

In Sitges the crowd line a street, while brave (or foolhardy) runners dash through a tunnel of fireworks.

Tecla was a saint of the early Christian Church, and a reported follower of Paul the Apostle. She has been celebrated in the region for thousands of years.