De-escalating dominoes: Human pile-up captured after mall escalator fails (VIDEO)

Several shoppers in China found themselves unwilling participants in a game of human dominoes after a mall escalator jolted into reverse, throwing everyone back on top of each other.

CCTV footage shows people hurtling back down the moving steps after the stairs suddenly changed direction. Some managed to escape the wave of bodies while others piled on top of each other.

Five people were injured in the incident, which occurred on Thursday in the city of Ningbo in Zhejiang Province.

Authorities have closed off the escalator and a probe has been launched into the cause of the accident, the state broadcaster CCTV reported.

READ MORE: That escalated quickly: Shoppers save child trapped by escalator (VIDEO)

It’s not the first time an escalator in China caused unexpected injuries. A young child in a shopping mall in Kaili city got his hand stuck in one, only to be saved by quick-thinking passers by.

Similarly, unsuspecting shoppers at a mall in Malaysia felt the wrath of an escalator in reverse after it too carried people back down to the ground with a crash.