2-3-08
We tell kids to stay out of small places for good reason. Most of the time, the stories we follow of children climbing into dishwashers or fridges end with funeral arrangements. But there’s another reason not to climb into such things: you can get stuck.

A 4-year-old Ohio boy found that out the hard way over the weekend, after climbing into his family’s top-loading washing machine. Little Donovon Hasseman found himself wedged up against the agitator (dutifully named) with a knee folded against his chest. Sounds like good times. The machine was empty at the time, and thankfully, wasn’t running.

The boy’s mother called 911 Sunday night after all attempts to wriggle and jiggle him out had failed. Firefighters responded, and didn’t do much better. They called an appliance store owner for advice on how to take the machine apart. They were eventually forced to use a metal cutter to slice into the appliance to get the boy out, said Dover Fire Captain Mike Mossor.