This is the terrifying moment an avalanche of fresh snow collapsed onto a woman’s head during a cold spell in northern China.

Footage shows the woman walking up the steps to her home in Langfang, Hebei province on November 7 after retrieving a package.

She was about to open the door when the huge slab of snow slid down from the roof and almost crushed her.

Footage shows large blocks whacking her on the head as she tries to take cover.

The shocked lady ran from the avalanche, which buried the stairs in ice. She was reportedly uninjured but needed to go back inside to recover from the shock and change clothes.

Large parts of northern China, including the capital Beijing, have this month been hit by freezing temperatures and the first snowfall of the year. It has sparked highway closures and flight and train cancellations.

Forecasters said the winter weather struck around a month earlier than usual. Temperatures on Sunday fell to some of their lowest for the period in the past decade.