A woman was barely saved from a vicious dog attack when it suddenly charged at her as she was walking down the street and bit her and dragged her by the arm.

The incident reportedly occurred as the woman, not identified in local media, walked past a residential area in Xiangtan, in Hunan Province, southern China, on the afternoon of December 17.

As she went past one shop, a large, black dog with a light collar rushed out and tackled her on the pavement.

Dramatic footage shows the aggressive canine pulling at her arm with its powerful jaws.

One man attempted to help her by throwing what appeared to be a brick at the beast, but narrowly missed.

Seemingly afraid to come too close and risk being bitten himself, he then tried to smack it with it broom, but it broke off the dog's back.

Meanwhile, another man filming the attack repeatedly shouted for help as the dog refused to let the woman go.

Police eventually arrived at the scene and managed to restrain it.

The woman was rushed to hospital, reportedly with non-life-threatening injuries.

A nearby shop owner, who was not identified, told local media said that the incident happened around 4 or 5 pm, and from a distance, he saw that the victim was a woman.

He was unclear about why the dog would bite a person, stating that the dog was large, and the owner found it challenging to control.

He added: 'This is the first time I've seen such a big dog.'

Nearby community members said the dog's owner is a shop owner in the neighbourhood.

They had been warned multiple times to keep the dog on a leash, but apparently refused to do so.

Property management staff said: 'We don't have mandatory measures; we can only remind, and the community should also report any incidents to the relevant departments.'

Police are currently investigating.