A US woman has been found alive after spending four days in a deep freezer.

Theresa Christian was discovered in the chest freezer at her Tulsa apartment by her son, who called the police, and it is thought the 59-year-old woman climbed into the cold space because of bad weather.

Tulsa police corporal Daisy Vallely is quoted by News On 6 as saying: ''Apparently family members had reported her missing since Saturday and they finally got her son in who recognised immediately that there was no way she could have left the residence willingly without her purse and other belongings and left her TV on.

''So they started searching the house and neighbours said possibly she thought maybe there was tornado coming but their sure why or how she got there but her son heard a moan coming from the area of the freezer and opened up and discovered her sitting inside.''

Theresa was taken to hospital with frostbite.