Sinkhole swallows four people in China

This surveillance footage from China shows the moment a sinkhole opens up in the ground and swallows unsuspecting people.

The other commuters completely disappear from view beneath the surface.

Even Xinhua, the state news agency, tweeted the footage on Wednesday afternoon, and was uploaded Youku, the mainland’s version of YouTube.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.

One woman can be seen clinging onto a steel bar under the pavement before she is eventually lifted to safety.

The sinkhole, which appeared on Guxiang Avenue in the Heilongjiang Province, China, was reportedly ten square metres and two metres deep.

The report gave no further details about the condition of the severely injured victim.

An investigation has now been launched into the incident, according to local media.