This is the moment two sleeping workmen are rudely awakened by a van nearly running them over.

The incident was filmed in a warehouse in the city of Kunming in the southern Chinese province of Yunnan.

Two workers were reportedly taking a break from their duties when they were nearly run over by the van driver.

In the footage, the two men are seen asleep on flattened cardboard on the floor as a van enters the frame.

Turning in their direction, the van slowly approaches the sleeping workers and stops short of running over the first man.

However, both workers startle and jump to their feet as the footage ends.

It is unclear if the kipping workmen escaped a ‘near miss’ or were being pranked by a cruel colleague who wanted to give them a rude awakening.

However, many netizens said they were frightened by the footage and believe the van driver should be investigated by the police, with some even speculating that it might have been a deliberate attempt to harm them.