A water buffalo was shot dead after it ran through streets in a city in southwest China and injured three people, according to a news website.

The animal ran amok in Jinghong in the Xishuangbanna area of Yunnan province on Thursday evening, Thepaper.cn reported.

The animal was seen chasing people in a pedestrian area, knocking over a motorcycle and then heading to a main road.

It then span around on the highway, forcing cars to stop, the report said.

A red motorbike was flipped over and the buffalo struck the woman rider with its head, tossing her into the air, according to the article.

She was taken to hospital for treatment.