A video of a man in China’s Henan province being tied to a pillar for not wearing a mask recently went viral on Chinese social media. The humiliating act took place in Mengke town just outside Puyang on February 13.

The video shows a worker in a hazmat suit berating the man while another worker ties him to the pillar from his abdomen to his knees. “Do you want to live?” the health worker is heard yelling in the video, adding, “Even if you don’t want to live, other folks want to.”

On Monday, Mengke town’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention responded to the viral clip, saying that the method the worker used was inappropriate and the behavior was excessive, according to a video post by Phoenix News. The center stated that the resident did not wear a mask, and passed through the inspection area multiple times without listening to instructions.

Watch the interaction in the video below (VPN off):

It’s apparent in the clip that the worker was fed up and lost it on the ‘maskless’ individual. Local authorities have opened an investigation into the incident.

Another recent video taken in Xianning, Hubei shows a guy without a mask getting tied to a tree, and his mouth covered by a bra. (That’s one DIY mask option...)



Screengrab via Weibo

It appears that tensions remain high in some parts of China as the country combats the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), with more than 70,000 total confirmed cases. Our advice: wear a mask – if you can buy one.

[Cover image: screengrab via Weibo]