A photo of a fridge in Saskatchewan, Canada, with handwritten signs saying “do not open” has sparked a viral discussion on Reddit.
Racking up 23,000 upvotes since it was shared on July, 29, the otherwise normal fridge that was sealed shut with tape ignited the internet.
“The suspicious fridge was left in our apartment parking lot, it was pointed out to be by my boyfriend,” Reddit user u/givemesomemorphine told Newsweek: “We joked that something creepy must be in there due to the signs.”
Fellow Reddit users suspected the worst and advised the 24-year-old, who preferred not to give her name, against opening it.
One user said: “100% chance there’s a dead body in there.”
Another warned: “Even if it’s not a dead body it’s [probably] rotten food that smells exactly like one so DO NOT OPEN IT.”
After a week, she could no longer resist the temptation though. She told Newsweek: “I opened it out of curiosity,” adding “[inside was] nothing like the comments suspected but at least the mystery was over.”
The big reveal was anticlimactic, to say the least. She found nothing but was met with a foul smell.
“The doors will remain closed because the fridge was sitting in a heat wave all week and the smell wasn’t pleasant,” she said.
She shared an image of the empty fridge and reassured others that “no body” was found.
“It is covered in brown stuff and mold. Yes, it smelled like garbage as well. Also, it wasn’t me who cut the tape, someone must have gotten curious before me,” she wrote.
“Well, that was underwhelming,” said one user with 2,400 upvotes.
“You were warned,” said another.
A third commenter said: “Yeah, I’ve heard of multiple situations where somebody’s electricity gets shut off, the food in the fridge starts to spoil, and when they open the doors the fridge is full of maggots.”
Previously, Newsweek spoke to cleaning experts who revealed five hygiene mistakes people make in the kitchen.
While this viral fridge is empty and abandoned, an overstocked fridge or freezer in a home is an “inefficient one,” said Laura Price, founder of London-based storage solutions company The Home Organisation.
She said: “Not only will your energy use be sky-high as the unit goes into overdrive trying to keep the food cold, but you’re increasing the chances of your food spoiling more quickly,” Price said. “At best, this means you have to throw it away, and at worst, it means you may get ill from it.”
If you have a personal dilemma, let us know via [email protected]. We can ask experts for advice on relationships, family, friends, money and work and your story could be featured on Newsweek’s “What Should I Do? section.
The post Woman Disappointed by Contents of ‘Suspicious Fridge’ Left in Parking Lot appeared first on Newsweek.