A scavenger saved a premature baby from a bin after its father allegedly dumped it there, according to reports.

Images from China appear to show a man cradling the tiny baby boy after finding him in a bin while searching for valuables outside a hospital in Chongqing, a major city in the country's south-west.

A crowd gathered after the man pulled the 3lb child, thought to have been born at about 30 weeks' gestation, from the bin, before doctors from Fuling Centre Hospital checked over the infant and confirmed he had been born there, according to reports in Chinese media.

The baby was still healthy despite its ordeal, doctors found after the incident on 23 June.

Police were called to the hospital and tracked down the boy's father, who expressed regret for his action but was not arrested.

Officers gave him a stern warning, it is claimed.