Comedian almost dies after being crushed by 600lb fridge in freak accident

Comedian Laura Clery has told how she miraculously dodged death after she was 'pinned' underneath a 600lb (272kg) fridge.

The 39-year-old funnywoman described the incident as the 'most terrifying night of her life', explaining that her brush with death was even more alarming as she is a 'single mom' who was home alone with her two kids at the time.

She has shared a harrowing account of what unfolded in her home last week, recalling how she 'couldn't move, couldn't breathe and genuinely didn’t know if she was getting out of that alive'.

Clery - who shares children Alfie, 7, and Poppy, 5, with her former husband Stephen Hilton, a British record producer. The pair divorced in 2023, a year after announcing they were calling time on their decade-long marriage.

The Chicago-born star said it took three firefighters to haul the huge stainless steel fridge off of her.

Sharing footage of her being whisked away by emergency responders in an Instagram post on Thursday (21 May), Clery explained in the caption: "I was home alone getting ready for bed when my 600 pound fridge slammed into me and pinned me against the counter. I couldn’t move.

"Couldn’t breathe right. Was impossible to get off and I could feel myself losing consciousness. My kids were in the house. I genuinely didn’t know if I was getting out of that alive.

"Thank God my phone was in my pocket and I was able to call 911. Thank god it didn’t fall on my kids. It took three firefighters to lift it off me. I’m still shaking."

'If I don’t breathe, I’m going to lose consciousness'

Describing the agony she was in, Clery compared the pain to 'when she was fully dilated and having contractions' in the comment section of her post.

"I remember being stuck under this massive 600 pound stainless steel fridge thinking, 'If I don’t breathe, I’m going to lose consciousness,'" Clery said.

"If that happens, my kids are alone in the home with no one coming, I was meant to take them to school in the morning. Seriously...this could have been SO much worse."

Sharing further details in a post shared to Patreon - which social media users have to pay $5 (£4) for the privilege of accessing in full - Clery explained she had noticed her son Alfie climbing on the wall-mounted fridge moments beforehand.

The mother-of-two said she noticed it 'shift' slightly, so she went over to 'push it back into place'.

"I thought I’d just nudge it in and move on with my day, like a woman who has control over her life," Clery continued. "The second I pushed it, it came down on me."

She recalled how, while she was being crushed under the staggering weight of the fridge, she thought to herself: "This is the dumbest way anyone has ever died.”

'I can walk...I’m so lucky!'

Miraculously, the Idiot podcast host said she did not sustain any broken bones. She was taken to hospital by the firefighters who rescued her and is now recovering at home, but admitted she is still 'fragile'.

Clery said the reactions of her two children compounded her 'panic', as her daughter Penelope cried while son Alfie 'ran outside, probably scared out of his mind'.

In another Instagram post, the popular YouTuber heaped praise on the 'amazing firefighters who saved her life', dubbing them 'real life angels'.

"They got there so fast, broke through my garage door, and 3 of them pushed a 600 pound fridge off of me and got me safely to the trauma unit before things got worse," Clery said.

"I keep thinking about how differently this could have gone and I just feel overwhelming gratitude," the mum went on. "No broken bones, my kids are okay and safe, I can walk...I’m so lucky!

"They were calm, kind and just handled everything like absolute heroes! And then right as one of them pushes the fridge off me, he goes, 'Wait...I watch all of your videos!'"

"And they all start hyping me up," she wrote, before comically adding: "Like sir...I am currently being flattened, but thank you. Forever grateful for these men."

Fans of the social media star flooded the comment section of her post with well wishes, although some people were stunned that she decided to film the aftermath of her near-death experience.

One comment read: "Sending you so much love. This is terrifying and absolutely a single mum's worst fear. I’m so sorry Laura and so glad you’re all okay."

Another wrote: "Omg! So relieved you're going to be okay! And now Im excited for story time! Silver lining - a fridge falling on you and surviving to tell the tale is comedy gold, Laura!'

A third described the incident as 'insane', while a fourth wrote: "I’m really glad you are ok and that help got to you fast."

Other people were more preoccupied with the fact that Clery had whipped her phone out and recorded the subsequent events after she was rescued, while some called her out for flogging the full story time on Patreon.

"Imagine the only thing that matters in this moment is filming it for social media," one said. "How dystopian."

Another added: "Why were you recording in the middle of getting put into an ambulance?"

And a third said: "Glad you are okay - but charging $5 to hear what happened?"

In another comment, Clery stated that the weighty fridge 'wasn't installed properly' while telling a fan that she intends to 'sue'.