Public ignore woman who was hit by two cars in China

Warning: Graphic Content

Horrifying footage has emerged online showing a woman being hit by a taxi and left lying in the middle of a crossroad for more than two minutes - and is then run over a second time.

Over 20 onlookers ignored the wounded pedestrian as they walked past her before an SUV ran her over for a second time, according to Daily Mail.

She was killed after the second accident, said the police.

A video of the incident was uploaded by web user Yuan Qicong on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform, on June 7.

The post has been viewed more than 26 million times.

The footage shows the woman, in a white top, waiting in the middle of the road as she tried to go to the other side.

A red taxi drove past the zebra lines without stopping and hit the woman.

About five onlookers stood near the woman and witnessed the accident. However, none of them went up to help the woman.

In the next minute, more than 20 onlookers crossed the road. They ignored the woman who appeared to be struggling.

Cars drove past her slowly, but none stopped to help her.

The woman lifted her head and appeared to be struggling to get up.

About five pedestrians witnessed the accident, but none of them went to check the woman. Photo / Weibo, Yuan qicong

Another minute later, a silver SUV drove past the crossing and ran straight over the woman.

The video ends as a female driver got out of the SUV and looked at the victim.

There are no traffic lights at the crossing, according to the Beijing Times, a Chinese newspaper.

Henan police bureau posted a statement last night confirming the incident.

According to the statement, the traffic accident took place at the crossroad of Jiefang Avenue and Xueyuan Road in Zhumadian city, Henan Province, at 7:54pm on April 21.

The victim has been identified by her surname Ma.

The woman was killed during the accident, said the statement. The two drivers, surnamed Zhang and Liu respectively, were found by the police on the morning of April 22.

Zhumadian police said they are still investigating the incident. The drivers are expected to face prosecution.

The incident has sparked heated discussions online.

Many people condemned the passersby to be "cold-hearted" and wondered how they could have watched a person die.

One web users questioned: "What kind of society are we living in?

"If I were there, I would have stopped all the cars and called emergency services for the woman. I guess this is the basic principle of humanity, isn't it?"

Another user, with a screen name Li_naaa, said: "How difficult is it to dial a number and call an ambulance?"

Roleo criticised: "A country will never be a great country if their people have such disgracing personality."

However, some people defended the passersby by saying they could be unsure of the authenticity of the accident.

One of them said: "I guess most of the people there wanted to help, but they were scared. They didn't know if they should lift her up or not."

There were comments blaming the police for posting a statement only after the video was revealed to the public.

"Two months later and they are still investigating?" One web user asked.

"Though the drivers have been tracked down by the police, what would happened afterwards? The statement did not explain anything," said AudreyLiJiaJia.