Anyone who’s used a claw machine will tell you one thing: it’d be much easier to just grab a toy with your own hands.
A young boy tried to do exactly that in Guangdong, China, on Sunday when he crawled into a claw machine at a shopping mall and became trapped inside.
The boy’s terrified mother called for help when she saw her son behind glass, and fire crews ultimately showed up to rescue him.
Video posted by the firefighters shows them working carefully to free the boy from his plushy glass prison. And no, they didn’t use the claw to grab him.
Firefighters eventually removed a pane of glass from the machine and lifted the boy out.
The fire crew released video and details of the incident on Weibo, a popular Chinese video service, according to Storyful.
There have been many cases of kids becoming trapped in claw machines in the past. Fire crews usually have to crack open the machines to pluck the little tykes out.
The boy did not appear to have any toys in his hands when he was rescued. He also didn’t have any prizes stuffed into the pockets of his pyjamas.
Perhaps the boy’s parents should take him to the city of Chongqing, where one shopping mall has created a human claw machine. Operators strap a child into a crane and suspend them over a pool full of toys, then lower them down to grab the toys themselves.
Better luck next time?