A mother's brave sacrifice to save her son from an e-scooter battery explosion could not prevent a tragic ending as the boy died after four days in hospital.

The pair were walking to a garden near their home in Liaoning, China, last Saturday (Nov 3) when an electric scooter that had been left charging at the foot of an apartment block caught fire and exploded, reported www.hsxiang.com.

The mother's first instinct was to shield her son from the blast with her body. The 34-year-old later died on the way to hospital.

According to family members, only the woman's chest and abdomen area were unhurt from the explosion as she had hugged her son's head against her there.

Her five-year-old son was severely burnt and lost his sight because of the accident. He was shuttled between five hospitals on the same day due to his grave injuries and was eventually warded in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Shenyang for treatment, according to www.hsxiang.com.

However, the boy succumbed to his injuries four days after the accident, Chinese media site The Paper reported.

The local authorities are investigating the reason for the freak accident, which is thought to be caused by a defective e-scooter battery.