Scores of toddlers in eastern China were thrown out of a window from their second-floor kindergarten as the school was engulfed in fire and smoke on Wednesday.
Dramatic footage captured by witnesses and shared on social media showed the children being swung out of the building in Ningde, Fujian and caught by people standing under the window.
All 92 students are now safe, although it is unclear how many of them were “rescued” this way, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
One picture posted on microblogging site Weibo showed a large crowd gathering under the building waiting to catch toddlers who were thrown out of the window. Another showed several people holding up a plastic sheet to catch the falling kids.
Other pictures showed some toddlers were carried down ladders.
The fire broke out on the first floor of the building at around 11am on Wednesday and quickly spread to the second floor CCTV said.
Over 300 teachers and pupils were rescued, 104 of which were hospitalised, authorities said.
However, netizens have questioned the extreme rescue method of throwing kids out of the window when there were no air mattresses on the ground.
CCTV said the building was used for both residential and commercial purposes. Local police are investigating the cause of the fire.
