Elderly man faints in street, no one stops to help him for 5 min

Yet another video has hit Chinese social media showcasing the depressing lack of Good Samaritan spirit in China.

Surveillance footage from January 10th shows an elderly man hopping on an electric scooter and beginning to leave a busy market in Lingao County, Hainan. However, before he can depart, the man comes to a sudden stop and topples over in the middle of the street.

While a number of people clearly see the man faint, none come to his aid, including one tricycle rider who simply continues to stare.

Eventually, a few passersby help to pick up the man’s scooter and a crowd begins to form around him, however, none of them actually bend down to help.

Finally, about five minutes after he initially passed out, a young woman comes by and immediately begins administering first aid. However, by that point, it was already too late. The woman has to be led away from the scene by a friend in tears.

The man’s family have said that they hope to find the woman and thank her for doing her best to help.

You can watch a video from The Paper covering the incident below:

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=c053378lhvq&width=500&height=375&auto=0

Unfortunately, ignoring strangers in need is an all too common occurrence in China where public trust has been eroded away by scammers who fake accidents in the hope of blackmailing anyone who tries to help.

Last June, a woman was hit by a car while crossing a busy intersection in Henan, leaving her lying motionless alongside a crosswalk. Afterward, dozens of pedestrians and drivers passed by without taking action to help the woman before watching as she was run over for a second time, ending her life.

A few months later, China’s national Good Samaritan law went into effect, providing broad protections to those who voluntarily offer emergency assistance, however, it seems unlikely that it will do much to change the country’s culture of distrust.

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