This is the moment when a hairdresser sets himself, his customer, and the whole salon on fire when he switches on an apparently faulty hairdryer.

A security camera caught the terrifying incident as it unfolded in a hair salon in Kachpur, Narayanganj District, central Bangladesh in July.

Footage of the mishap was posted to social media and had racked up more than 700,000 views at the time of writing.

The clip shows how the hairdresser styles his customer’s hair with a hairbrush while holding the plugged-in hairdryer in his other hand.

As he tries to switch on the appliance, a giant jet of fire bursts out the back of it, engulfing both men and the salon in flames.

The men can be seen running away in shock as the salon is within seconds ablaze with flames and smoke, with two barber chairs remaining on fire as the footage ends.

Both the hairdresser and his customer received grievous burn injuries, according to reports, and one of them was left severely injured.

Media reports speculated that the cause of the incident was either a short circuit or a gas leak from an air conditioner.