Olive oil was his key to freedom.
The slippery condiment was used to get a naked Australian man out of a top-loading washing machine into which he had climbed, apparently as part of a game of hide-and-seek gone horribly, hilariously wrong. And it took the combined efforts of police, paramedics, firefighters and a local search and rescue squad—all of whom converged upon the man's residence—to get the job done.
"He was very well wedged in there and we were concerned for his health and well-being," Police Sgt. Michelle De Araugo told the Herald Sun newspaper. " … It would be fair to say the gentleman was very embarrassed."
His last name mercifully withheld, 20-year old "Laurence" told Australia's Fairfax Radio that he "was on his way to take a shower on Saturday when he decided to climb into the top-loader to have a bit of fun."
"I was quite disappointed they used my good olive oil," added Laurence. "As soon as the washing machine went on its side, it was a bit like a birthing."
