CCTV footage has captured the extraordinary moment a man caught a baby who tumbled from a two-storey building in China.

The man - named locally as Mr Li - was walking past the building in the southern city of Zhongshan during a thunderstorm when he spotted that the one-year-old boy had climbed onto a window.

A nearby vendor said that the youngster was looking for his mother and managed to climb out onto the ledge.

A tense scene ensued as a small group of neighbours and passers-by rushed to try and help the child.

The boy eventually toppled off the windowsill and Mr Li managed to catch him.

CCTV footage from the side of the building shows the heart-stopping moment when Mr Li watched as the baby fell and prepared to catch him - with the help of another man known as Mr Hu.

The baby landed safely and his distraught mother is seen taking him away.

"Some people put down cardboard to avoid serious injuries to the baby if I fail to catch him," Mr Li said. "I didn’t think too much at the time. I was just afraid of failing to catch him.

"It was nothing but human instinct to do so."

Incredible CCTV footage shows man catching falling baby