Viral Video: Woman From China Dies From Freak Escalator Accident After Saving Her Son [WATCH]

A woman was killed on Sunday after falling in an escalator. The escalator, found in a shopping mall in central China, had a dismembered metal panel at the top where people typically step on upon alighting from the machine.

The surveillance video shows that 30-year-old Xiang Liujuan with her toddler son, were tripping as they stepped on the metal panel. Fortunately, Liujuan was able to push her son to safety before being pulled into the escalator.

Employees who were witnesses to the incident attempted to pull the woman from the escalator after getting the boy to safety, but failed to stop the escalator from pulling her into the machine.

According to local newspaper, Wuhan Evening News, Xiang Liujuan fell in the escalator at 10:09 local time. Rescuers were only able to reclaim Xiang Liujan's body at 14:00.

Furthermore, the local publication also noted that unconfirmed reports claim that the escalator had undergone maintenance recently, which involved replacing the metal panel. Unfortunately, the metal panel was not fully secured with screws, which led to the accident.

The tragedy prompted many furious Chinese people on social media. In fact, many onlookers are demanding a response from the Jingzhou City Department Store management.

According to BBC, "As of Monday morning, microblog posts on the subject had attracted more than 20 million views."

One user even commented, "Where were the screws to secure the panel? If the screws had been removed why didn't they shut down the escalator? What brand was that escalator?"

Local police are currently investigating the accident. A reporter for the Wuhan Evening News tried to contact Li Liang, head of the Jingzhou City Department Store, for a comment regarding the incident. However, the "person in charge" hung up the phone on the reporter.

Watch the horrific surveillance footage via News Beat Social below.