Three men were washed away by the Qiantang River tide when they were trying to walk back to the shore in eastern China.

The terrifying video, shot under the Jiubao bridge in Hangzhou city in Zhejiang province at 17:00 on July 7, shows three men walking to the shore in Qiantang river as the tide moves towards them.

Since they could not get to the shore in time, they held together to try to fight against the incoming tide.

However, the strong tide submerged them and swept them down the river.

A woman can be heard crying and saying: "What can they do?"

According to local reports, three men were all found at night. Two survived and were not in life-threatening condition, while one died.

They were suspected of illegally swimming in the river, according to local police.