Carla La Tella
Family & Pets

Four-year-old gets stuck INSIDE arcade claw machine

A family from Airlie Beach have had quite the shock while dining at their local pub, as their four-year-old became trapped inside a claw game/skill tester vending machine.

Young Poppy was trying to retrieve a teddy bear for her sisters.

“The girls were just playing outside,” Poppy’s mother Melanie Pike told 7NEWS.

Melanie was eating lunch when two of her daughters ran to alert her and their dad about the dilemma at hand.

“The next thing, my twin daughters ran inside and said "ah, Mum, Poppy’s stuck in a vending machine,” Melanie said.

Once inside, Poppy realised getting out wasn’t so easy, and footage of the moment captures her looking distressed and banging on the glass.

While Melanie found the humour in the situation, Poppy’s dad sprung into action with some quick thinking and careful instructions.

The four-year-old was able to manoeuvre back out of the machine legs-first, as one of Poppy’s sisters watched on tearfully nearby.

“Sit on your bum, lean back,” her dad instructed.

“There ya go. That’s why you don’t steal from vending machines,” he said upon freeing her.

This isn't the first time a child has crawled into a claw machine desperate for toys – and it surely won't be the last.

Images: 7News

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Family & Pets, Airlie Beach, claw machine accident, Queensland, caring