Flood sweeps student down street in Montreal   Play video McGill won't say if it will sue over water main break Major water leak floods downtown Montreal Photos: Montreal flooding

MONTREAL - Images of a McGill student being carried away by a raging downtown flood proved this wasn't any ordinary water main break.

McGill took the brunt of the damage when an aging pipe burst, sending 40 million litres of water coursing into school basements while turning streets into rivers.

The most dramatic moment in Monday's pipe failure came when a young woman tried to cross a street on campus and braced herself against water that was nearly up to her waist, as captured on video.

"Wait! She's gonna get hit," a bystander screams as the woman falls down and is carried down the street.

An onlooker says: "Somebody should go and save her." The woman was apparently unhurt.