A shopper had his toe ripped off by an escalator after trapping his foot in the moving metal stairs.
The unnamed man was said to be "screaming in agony" after the accident, which happened at the West End Arcade in Nottingham.
Other shoppers tried to drag the 24-year-old man, who was bleeding profusely, out from the escalator, reports the BBC.
Shops close by were called upon for ice, so that the toe could be preserved, before the man was freed by paramedics. The man was awake the whole time during the incident.
Ambulance men described the victim as "tough" given the severity of his injuries.
Shop worker David Rose, 57, who was working close by, told The Nottingham Post:
"They took the escalator top off before they took him away, which I'm guessing was to see if they could find the toe."
The man is now being treated at Nottingham Queen's Medical Centre. The escalator has been closed down, and an investigation has been launched into the incident.