This is the bizarre moment a drunk Chinese man was seen wrestling a huge python on the street.

Video shows the shirtless local with his arms apparently ensnared by the 8ft snake in Huizhou City, Guangdong province, on September 28. He tried bashing the reptile on the pavement but failed to loosen its death grip.

Firefighters and police later arrived and pried the 30lb serpent off of him before it could squeeze him to death.

They bagged it in a sack and released it into a secluded part of the mountains.

Huizhou police said the unnamed man had been inebriated and could not clearly explain how he was entangled by the python.

The Xiaojinkou Professional Fire Brigade said the snake had likely emerged from a nearby riverbank.

They believe the man may have provoked it while emboldened by the alcohol, causing it to wrap around his arms.

The man declined to be taken to the hospital as he was not seriously injured. Officers reportedly gave him a warning and he was released.