A 2-year-old girl is fortunate to be alive after being knocked down and run over by a car while playing on the pavement in northern China.

As soon as the accident occurred, onlookers joined forces to lift the vehicle off the girl within two minutes after she was trapped under the wheel, reported state media.

The girl sustained fractures on her skull, deep cuts on her head and bruises across her body. She was said to be in stable condition.

The accident took place last Tuesday, July 7, in the city of Gaobeidian in Hebei Province, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Surveillance footage shows the girl was squatting and playing on a stretch of pavement which doubled as a car park seconds before being hit.

Two adults were standing next to the child at the time of the accident. One of them rushed over to the car after the toddler disappeared under the wheel. Residents, workers at the stores nearby as well as police officers quickly gathered after the driver of the car yelled for help, the report said.

A police officer said around 20 Good Samaritans joined forces to free the girl.

A police officer told video news outlet Pear that the girl was first taken to a local hospital. She was then transferred to a hospital in Beijing about 50 miles away for better medical attention.

She was given treatment in Beijing before being sent to a hospital in Baoding,.