News

Australian boy freed from vending machine

The 4-year-old boy had a bad first experience with a vending machine when he got his hand trapped in the anti-theft device. It took six hours for fire fighters to get him free.

March 7, 2016

A 4-year-old Australian boy had a bad first experience with a vending machine as he got his arm stuck in the device for hours. He attempted to reach his hand into the vending machine at a hotel in Melbourne and got his hand trapped in its anti-theft device, according to a report by CNN.

Rescue workers spent six hours attempting to free the boy's hand, while showing him cartoons and giving him a stuffed animal to distract him. They also had to use sedatives to keep him calm.

"We live up in Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, and I don't think he's seen a vending machine before so he saw the Oreos, and some biscuits and a few other things," his father Aaron Shorthouse said.

"Look, over the years I've attended to several children with their arms in vending machines. This particular one is actually quite heavy duty and a real challenge for us," said Steve Watts of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade.

Upon being freed, the boy was sent to the Royal Children's Hospital and was in a stable condition.