Father dies saving daughter in Chinese building disaster

Rescuers in China have pulled free a young girl trapped beneath tonnes of rubble after her father made the ultimate sacrifice to save his daughter.

WARNING: VIEWERS MAY FIND IMAGE BELOW DISTURBING 

Following the collapse of residential buildings in the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou, three-year-old Wu Ningxi was trapped in the debris of a six-storey building for more than 12 hours, reports The Mirror.

Video footage shows rescuers around the devastated site carefully remove debris to ensure there is no further collapse.

They then glimpse part of the girl’s leg trapped beneath rubble.

One of the rescuers explains how her life was saved by her father who shielded his daughter and took the impact of a thick concrete pillar on his back and head.

The body of the girl’s mother was also discovered close to her.

Wu was the last of only six survivors to be pulled from the disaster site, local media reported.

The cause of the disaster was still under investigation but it is believed recent heavy rainfall combined with the poor construction methods and age of the buildings were probable factors.