Rescuers attack man holding girl hostage in Chinese primary school

A dramatic video has shown how rescuers in China were able to attack a man holding a schoolgirl hostage at a primary school in Hunan, China on the morning of Oct 8.

In the video posted on YouTube, a man can be seen holding a girl, who is believed to be in the fifth-grade, hostage on the third floor of the school building and threatening to throw her off.

According to Shanghaiist, police and rescue authorities tried to negotiate with the man for three hours, but their efforts yielded no success.

It was then that the rescue team decided to take action.

A member from the rescue team was lowered from the fourth floor by the side of the building with a rope harness while the man's back was turned.

The rescue team was able to surprise the man and tackle him, knocking him down and freeing the student.

According to the video, the man is reportedly believed to be suffering from a mental illness.

seanyap@sph.com.sg