PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Shoppers had a fright when a woman was injured in an escalator mishap at a shopping complex in Selangor.

Photographs circulating on Facebook showed the victim sitting by the side of an escalator with a bad gash on her calf while friends were seen trying to console her.

According to a statement from the management of the shopping complex on its official Facebook page, the incident happened at 4pm on Sunday (March 5).

When contacted, its marketing communications assistant manager said investigations were ongoing to find out what had happened.

"From the photos, you can see that a metal piece on the side of the escalator came unhinged and was bent to the middle.

"We are still unsure how this had happened as it would usually take some form of abuse for the metal to come off like that," he said.

The victim, 20, was sent for treatment at a nearby hospital. The mall will be footing her medical bill.

No one else was hurt in the incident.