Firefighters rescue boy from Cabela's gun safe after brother locks him in

Firefighters freed a 9-year-old boy from a gun safe Saturday in Hoffman Estates after his brother locked him in it, officials said.

"He was in there probably 10 minutes before we got there and another 10 minutes on the scene," Fire Battalion Chief Mike Bosco said. "His father was able to talk to him through the door. He had some questions, but he wasn't freaking out."

Bosco said the boy was shopping with family at Cabela's, 5225 Prairie Stone Pkwy., a little after 8 p.m. when his brother forced him into a display safe, shut the door and spun the locking mechanism.

Cabela's employees tried to free him, but the safe's electronic keypad malfunctioned, Bosco said. Fire Lt. Jay Martino and the staff eventually used a keypad from another safe to open the door.

"I'm proud of him (Martino)," Bosco said. "He's a very mechanical guy, and we're lucky to have him. It would have gotten very interesting if we had to use our heavy tools."

Bosco described the metal safe as roughly 5 feet tall, 3 feet wide and 18 inches deep. He said it is airtight only in the presence of a fire, so the boy still was able to breathe.

The unusual incident was the talk of the fire department. "It's definitely a first," Bosco said.

The boy's identity was not released.