China Escalator Accident: Mom Killed During Collapse Saves Toddler Son

An accidental escalator collapse killed a woman in China over the weekend, but she was able to save her toddler son by shoving him to safety.

Xiang Liujuan was shopping with her 2-year old son on Saturday at the AZG Mall in central China when they stepped off an escalator. The metal panel beneath their feet suddenly collapsed and the 31-year-old woman swiftly pushed her son to safety as two saleswomen grabbed him — but she was not so fortunate. Unable to pull herself up, the woman was swallowed by the hole in the ground.

"I was appalled when I saw her sink and at the same time felt the greatness of maternal love — the mother wasted no time pushing the child out when it happened," an onlooker told Agence France-Presse.

Firefighters spent nearly four hours uncovering the mother, who displayed “no signs of life,” AFP reported.

The accident was apparently a product of human error, as workers at the Anliang department store had conducted maintenance on the escalator and neglected to properly screw the metal access cover into place.

"Why didn't the staffers stop customers at the entrance to the machine or just turn it off?” asked an angry viewer. "The department store is definitely responsible."

The victim’s family has taken to Weibo, a microblogging website, to call for a clear and thorough investigation of the incident.

"An ordinary Sunday shopping trip ended up in such a sudden tragedy, almost ruining an entire family," wrote user @kkcake, who claims to be Xiang’s sister, CNN reported. "The shopping mall is still open and the killer escalators are still running . . . Shoppers have no idea about the tragedy upstairs and no one knows if such disasters will strike again."

China’s lax approach to safety regulations makes incidents like these all too common.

Just earlier this week, for example, a toddler in Guangxi province fractured his arm after getting caught in an escalator. Also on Sunday, a Beijing boy’s foot was caught in an escalator for almost a half hour. A year ago, more than a dozen people sustained injuries after an escalator in a Shanghai subway malfunctioned and reversed directions without warning, according to CNN.

A security camera caught the most recent tragic scene on video, and it was later posted to YouTube.



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