A young toddler had his hand trapped in a moving escalator while he was left playing alone at a shopping mall in south-west China.
At least two of his fingers were stuck at a yellow plate at the end of the escalator before nearby shopkeepers rushed to stop the machine.
Firefighters were alerted to the scene and removed a comb plate and took the boy to a hospital for emergency treatment.
A security guard told Pear Video, a Chinese video-sharing platform, that the freak incident took place at a clothing market in Metian county of Guizhou Province on May 21.
![This is the shocking moment a young toddler was trapped in an escalator. Photo / YouKu](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/27XBGIVRJCXFW2ZEHGYZPN7LRY.jpg?auth=5f9c9c4694037c95134b3351926e06fea9a17c039d2687521ccbc608205c98d8&width=16&height=11&quality=70&smart=true)