A mother from Sihong County, in east China’s Jiangsu province, protected her two-year-old daughter after falling into a four-metre-deep open sewer. She instinctively held her tight in her arms as she fell, shielding her daughter from the impact.
The accident happened on Saturday while Fu, a mother of two, was walking with her children down a dark street that was under construction.
The open sewer was covered by a sheet of plastic and the street had been so dark that it was impossible to detect any apparent danger.
“I was walking to the opposite side of the supermarket. I had my little child in my arms and my elder daughter following me. We often take this way, but today I suddenly fell down,” said Fu, according to the Associated Press.
The elder daughter, who had been walking behind them, immediately started screaming out for help. Residents started coming out of their homes to address the emergency.
“When I arrived, she had already fallen down. She wanted me to bring the child out of the well, and I got down to help her,” said one local.
Firefighters quickly arrived on scene and lifted the mother out of the sewer with the help of a safety harness. Fu was then immediately rushed to a hospital.
The South Morning China Post reported that Fu suffered injuries to her waist and is receiving treatment. The infant was left unscathed without any visible injuries.