This is the terrifying moment a crane comes crashing down onto a building site crushing six sleeping workers beneath it.

The shocking incident happened when the 300-foot-high crane’s jib – or arm – snapped while it was lifting building material.

Tonnes of twisted metal and debris plunged to the ground and straight through the roof of a makeshift dormitory where shift workers were sleeping.

Six died and two were injured as the broken crane fell in the new hotel site in Bornova, Izmir, Turkey, on 30th December.

Police, firefighters, and paramedics were dispatched to deal with the gruesome carnage.

Footage of the ordeal shows how pedestrians ran for cover as debris rained down on a nearby road.

A second piece of footage filmed from the top of the crane shows the dizzying height the falling debris plummeted before crushing the workers.

Local media reported a number of arrests following the incident.

Construction firm owner Emrullah Yolci, site chief Muhammet Fatih Yolci, occupational safety officer Fikret Kamil Aydin, and crane firm owner Irfan Kasirga were all seized on accusations of negligence.

The deceased were named as Yildirim Sari, Fesih Ciftci, Baykal Gunduz, Aslan Akkaya, Ali Sukru Duru, and Umit Kara.

Yildirim’s brother Kenan was also in the container at the time of the incident but survived unscathed.

Workers on the site told local media they had earlier begged for the makeshift dormitories to be moved, saying they were a safety threat.

Injured worker Mucahit Ciftci told local media: “We’ve told the company a thousand times that the rubble was falling every day.

“They weren’t interested. They just built a roof over our heads.

“It is not a work accident, it is murder.”