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Somehow, seat belts often become a matter of contention. Some people buckle-up instinctively upon getting in a car, while others refuse to snap it even when it’s a legal requirement. For many, it’s just another hassle. But even if you think seat belts are stupid and would rather pay a fine than strap in, this video of a terrifying bus accident in Zhejiang, China will change your mind.

The video, which was uploaded yesterday, has become the focus of a lot of attention in Japan, with its shocking, gravity-defying images. Though the video is from China, it’s important to remember that this could happen literally anywhere, so please drive safely and buckle in!

The highway bus (like Greyhound in the United States) was equipped with multiple cameras, and the heart-stopping video shows us a few seconds of footage from three of them, stitching together an entirely-too-clear image of the accident.

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Camera one is attached to the front of the bus, showing the road ahead. The footage starts calmly enough but less than a second in, the world suddenly lurches and spins violently as we’re shoved forward and into another lane. It’s a gut-punch of an introduction.

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Camera two is a side view of the bus driver. In the video, we can clearly seem him carefully backing up, stopping, and putting the vehicle into first when out of nowhere he pitches forward, launched up out of his seat. For a brief moment, it looks as if he’s trying to steer the bus while floating in midair before the vehicle flips onto its side. Then the window glass simply disappears and he vanishes after it. It’s exactly like a sci-fi movie when someone gets sucked into the vacuum of space.

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Camera three, and the last clip from inside the bus, shows us a view of the passengers, chatting and craning their necks to see what’s going on as the driver backs up. The impact is most dramatic here. In a blink, the screen goes from serenity to chaos with passengers flying wildly around the cabin. Before the bus comes to a stop, people and luggage are dashed against every surface before zipping out the windows too fast to identify.

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And, just as intensely as it began, the crash is over. Baffled and shocked bus riders push themselves up in a daze before the final clip—a brief look at the overturned bus and an utterly demolished truck.

As for the cause of the accident, it seems that the driver had taken the wrong exit and was backing up to correct his course. It was then that a truck rear-ended the bus, casting everything into disarray. While we’re relieved to report that all of the bus passengers survived the crash, we’re saddened to say that the driver of the truck did not.

Please, dear readers, buckle up! We want you to be reading RocketNews24 for many, many years to come.

▼You can check out the heart-stopping video below.

[ Read in Japanese ]