Extra dies after an accident during filming of a movie in Spain

A 78-year-old man died a few days after suffering a fall during the shooting of the latest movie project by famous Spanish filmmakers Los Javis - La Bola Negra or The Black Ball in English.

It happened on set in an unrenovated area of ​​the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas on 1 September, when renowned architect Enrique García García, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's, stumbled down some steps. He suffered several injuries, including a severe cranioencephalic trauma that ended up causing his death in hospital three days later. The gentleman had been hired to work in the film as an extra.

An ambulance was immediately called to the scene around 2.20pm. Two other extras - a doctor and a nurse by occupation - provided initial assistance. The ambulance took the injured man to Hospital Sierrallana in Torrelavega, but he was later transferred to Hospital Valdecilla in Santander due to complications. He died on 4 September.

Friends of the deceased said the body was cremated and buried in a ceremony attended only by the closest relatives, as not many people knew that he had died.

A witness on the set said that the man suddenly fell. "No one knows if he was hit by something or if it was a simple stumble," they explained.

Enrique García García was a renowned architect who had worked in Madrid during most of his career. However, he also worked in Cantabria, including on the Sierrallana hospital.

The general management of Los Esquiadores AIE - the company that had hired Enrique as an extra - confirmed that the steps where the accident had taken place met all the requirements for the prevention of occupational hazards. "This has been determined by the investigation. We had all the necessary lighting, the correct signage, the handrail and even the width of the steps was as required, but unfortunately the accident happened," said the head of the company. On the day of the incident, Enrique didn't even get to shoot, as his make-up had only just been done.

More than a hundred extras went down used those stairs on that day. "We are dismayed, we could not believe the news when they confirmed his death. We all expected that he would recover, because he was taken to hospital conscious," the company stated.

Enrique's death has been declared a work-related accident and will therefore be included in the Madrid statistics, as that is where the hiring company is based.

The Black Ball's filming in Cantabria started at the end of August and it should finish this week. Directed by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (Los Javis) and produced by Movistar Plus+ and Suma Content Films, it mainly uses the set in the buildings of the Comillas Pontifical University that have not been refurbished. The authors of La llamada (The Calling) and La Mesías (The Messiahs) have recreated bombing and field hospital scenes for the filming of the project, which announced the hiring of extras at the beginning of the summer.