This is the moment a driver is pulled to safety from a burning car seconds before it erupts into a giant fireball after an explosion occurred inside the vehicle.

The incident took place in Daqing, Heilongjiang province, in south-western China, on Wednesday, July 3.

Local media reports said that locals were alerted to the scene when there was a sudden explosion inside the car and black smoke began gushing from it.

The footage shows how the man climbed out of the front left window of the vehicle, with the locals helping him get out.

Seconds after exiting the vehicle, it burst into flames, with the images thencutting to the aftermath, with the vehicle burnt to a crisp.

Witnesses said that the motorist's skin was burned in the blast.

One witness, who was renovating a house with her family in the area at the time of the incident, said: 'I looked outside and saw that the car was on fire.

'My boyfriend's father and the renovation workers saw that there was someone in the car, so they ran out to rescue the person.

'The person was rescued with burns on his body. If he hadn't been pulled out, he would have died.'

It is unclear what caused the blast inside the vehicle.

The victim, who has not been named, is understood to have been taken to hospital for treatment but there have been no further updates on his condition.