Police Officer Drags Burning Gas Cylinder Out Of Building In Dramatic Video

A Chinese police officer removes a burning gas cylinder from a building - with his bare hands

Talk about going above and beyond the call of duty. Dramatic footage has emerged of a young police officer in China removing a burning gas cylinder from a residential building - with his bare hands. The incident occurred in east China's Jiangsu province. A gas cylinder in someone's kitchen caught fire. Officers from the local police station were the first to respond to the emergency. In a video, posted on YouTube, officers can be seen trying to figure out a way to prevent the fire from spreading.

"We rushed inside, covering our nose and mouth with wet towels, and found it was the propane tank that was on fire," says Officer Qian Yaoru. "There was no time to react."

Knowing he had no time to wait for fire fighters to arrive, Officer Yaoru says he decided the best thing to do would be to carry the cylinder away from the populated building to a more secluded spot.

Within seconds, Office Yaoru wrapped a wet towel around one hand and began carrying the burning gas cylinder down the stairs. In the video, he can be seen stopping a few times, burdened by the weight of the gas cylinder. His colleagues rush to help him. Officer Yaoru says he suffered minor injuries to his hand. His uniform too was singed. But he says he felt he did what was required of him in the moment.

Officer Yaoru has only been on the job for a little more than a year.

Watch the dramatic video here:

Police blame a malfunctioning valve on the gas cylinder for the accident.