Boy seeking toy climbs into arcade claw machine. Firefighters save the day.

[jpak]

http://bangordailynews.com/2018/02/08/news/nation/boy-seeking-toy-climbs-into-arcade-claw-machine-firefighters-save-the-day/

Under the hashtag #youneverknowwhatsgonnahappen, the Titusville, Florida, Fire and Emergency Services Department on Wednesday extricated a boy from an arcade claw machine. Apparently seeing no reason to wrestle with the contraption to get one of the stuffed toys inside, the boy reportedly climbed in through the back and couldn’t get out.

The Fire Department tells the story in a Facebook post:

“Often times we say to ourselves that you never know what the next shift will bring. The unexpected ways we get to help people in their time of need. That’s what draws people to public safety, the unexpected. Well today was no exception. This evening little Mason was enjoying some food and decided he wanted a stuffed animal. He wanted it so bad, he climbed into the game to get that toy!! Thankfully he was never in any distress as one of our own Lt.’s happen to be there off duty and assessed the situation. Engine 10 led by Lt. Abernathy, made short work of the situation. Driver Operator Lane and Firefighter George were able to get Mason out in short order with minimal damage to the game. We love a happy ending and are glad everything worked out. Mom, Mason and friends went back to eating dinner, E10 back to their station to await the next call. Pretty sure it won’t be the same as their last.”

Commenters were pleased with happy-ending story and impressed with the agility of the child, whose age was not provided.

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[Fla Dem]

1. Is this a thing? They ought to make these machines child proof.

Boy, three, gets stuck inside arcade claw machine after climbing in to grab a toy
Telegraph Reporters
22 MARCH 2017 • 12:11AM
A mischievous three-year-old won two prizes on the notoriously hard claw arcade game - by crawling inside to grab them instead.

Jamie Bracken-Murphy, from Nenagh, Tipperary, was trapped and on display in the machine for 10 minutes in his quest for a cuddly companion, according to dad Damien Murphy.

Footage shows the toddler seemingly both happy and perplexed while encased in glass and surrounded by soft toys at the Jump 'n' Gyms play centre in Nenagh, Ireland.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/03/22/boy-three-gets-stuck-inside-arcade-claw-machine-climbing-grab/

http://wixy.com/wixy-mornings/kid-gets-caught-in-claw-machine-game/

Kid Gets Caught in Claw Machine Game
Posted on December 20, 2017 by Holstein
It’s been awhile, but 2017 will not come to a close without at least one more kid getting caught in a claw machine game. A woman in Omaha, Nebraska, shared a video of her little cousin stuck in the machine. In a tweet, she said, “Y’all. My cousin’s kid climbed up the claw machine at our family Christmas and we had to call 911.” The tweet contained a video showing a young boy, clearly terrified, trapped inside a traditional claw machine. Two women can be heard attempting to soothe him.

Why Kids Keep Getting Stuck in Claw Toy Machines
By SUSANNA KIM Oct 22, 2014, 6:40 PM ET

Like a moth attracted to the flame, kids just can't seem to keep their tiny bodies out of toy claw machines. The latest incident started when 18-month-old Colin Lambert climbed into the game in Maryville, Tennessee, while his grandmother wasn't looking.

The fire department quickly retrieved the toddler from the toy machine at Browns Creek Coin Laundry, but not before his grandmother took several obligatory adorable photos (naturally).

"I took a bunch of photos," Diane O'Neill, 62, told ABC News. "As long as he was okay, it was funny. He thought it was fun, like, 'Look what I can do. I’m clever.' He was smiling until he wanted to get out, and then he became unhappy."

States including Wisconsin have regulated claw machine games as they do gambling activities -- limiting the value of prizes -- but not as safety hazards.

Claw machines are designed to be tantalizing, said Barbara Eldredge, design researcher and writer for creative agency Real Art, which made the world’s biggest claw machine, according to Guinness World Records. It is being re-installed and opens this week at Proto BuildBar in Dayton, Ohio. The claw game is 17 by 8 by 12 feet and costs $5 to play.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/kids-stuck-claw-toy-machines/story?id=26381639

[MichMan]

2. No adult supervision?