A San Francisco-based public defender was gored in the neck as he flouted strict rules to film a video of himself during the annual running of the bulls in Pamplona , Spain .

Jaime Alvarez, 46, sustained the harrowing injury during the final stages of Sunday mornings run, the first of the 2019 festival of San Fermin. He underwent 2 1/2 hours of surgery and remained hospitalized on Tuesday in serious condition. He was recovering favorably, according to a statement on the regional Navarra governments website .

The lawyer said he thought the coast was clear to take a selfie video of his completion of the 875-meter course through the city to the bullring when a bull unexpectedly charged at him and plunged its horn into the right side of his neck.

The joy and excitement of being in the bullring quickly turned into a scare, into real fear for my life, Alvarez told the Associated Press . In the course of a few seconds, a million thoughts came to my mind, and that of dying was definitely one of them.