Crowded escalator in China mall changes direction, injures 5

Crowded escalator in China mall changes direction, injures 5

A crowded escalator carrying people in a shopping centre last week in Ningbo, China changed direction abruptly, causing injuries to five shoppers.

According to a report by New Zealand television broadcaster TVNZ, the escalator which was on the ascent, suddenly began going backwards at high speed.

As seen in the video, the shoppers at the bottom half of the escalator seemed to mostly escape unscathed while the shoppers who were further up the escalator were affected more by the sudden change in direction. 

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This incident comes after another escalator mishap that was reported in January.

The accident occurred in a shopping mall in southwest China where a boy's hand was stuck under a descending hand rail of an escalator after he placed it there just before it dipped. 

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The child was saved from serious injuries after a shopper activated the emergency shutdown button for the escalator.

More tragically, an escalator incident in Chongqing, China resulted in the death of a four-year-old boy at a train station on Oct 8.

According to Chinese news portal NetEase, the child had been playing near an escalator when he got stuck between the escalator's handrail and the ground. 

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Even though the boy was rescued, he died along the way to a local hospital. 

prabukm@sph.com.sg

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