Death of girl in double hit-and-run triggers nation-wide mourning

GUANGZHOU - Yue Yue, the 2-year-old girl who was run over by two vehicles last week and ignored by numerous passers-by, died in hospital on Friday.

She died of brain failure at the General Hospital of the Guangzhou Military Command in South China's Guangdong province, doctors said.

Her death triggered a nationwide wave of mourning, as the incident has been closely followed by people who are concerned about a seemingly lack of morality in Chinese society.

Chinese hit-and-run toddler dies

BEIJING - A Chinese toddler who was ignored by 18 passers-by as she lay critically injured in the street after being run over by two vehicles has died, the hospital treating her said Friday.

Surveillance camera footage of people walking past the two-year-old girl, nicknamed Yue Yue, as she lay bleeding and unconscious sparked a wave of condemnation and soul-searching on China’s popular social networking sites.

A rubbish collector who finally moved the girl to the side of the street in the southern Chinese city of Foshan was hailed as a hero, but the incident also led many online commentators to question the state of Chinese morality.

“Yue Yue died of systemic organ failure,” a spokesman from the hospital treating her told AFP, adding that no expense had been spared to try to save the girl, whose parents are migrant workers.

Hit-and-run suspect holds daughter hostage

A man, said to have involved in a hit-and-run accident, held his daughter at knifepoint in a standoff with police in China.

Zhang Gang was fetching his wife and three-year-old daughter on an outing when his car collided with another vehicle in Yongren county of Yunnan province last week.

He sped off. Police, acting on a report lodged by another driver, launched a search for Zhang Gang's car and spotted the vehicle near a market.

They managed to block Zhang Gang and forced him to pull over.

Just as the cops were approaching him, Zhang Gang took out a knife and threatened to harm his wife and daughter.

He demanded the police to step back while waving the knife in his hand as he talked.

Unintentionally, he injured the wife in the neck. He released her later but still held the girl hostage.

Again, he scratched the girl's leg with the knife, causing her to cry loudly. On seeing this, Zhang Gang stabbed himself in the thigh.

Even after two hours, Zhang Gang showed no signs of surrendering despite persuasion from his mother and other family members.

However, during one crucial moment when police noticed that Zhang Gang was not paying attention to the surrounding area, they grabbed him from behind.

Police overpowered him, snatched away his knife and rescued the girl.

His wife and daughter suffered minor injuries.

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