An 8-year-old boy who didn't hesitate for a second before administering the Heimlich maneuver to save a classmate choking on a grape was applauded last week for his heroic gesture.
“I was terrified. I was going to get some water, hoping it wouldn't get stuck too […] He saw me standing holding my throat. He just pulled me towards him and gave me the Heimlich,” little Isaiah Rodriguez recounted Thursday in a video shared by the Mesa Fire and Medical Department in Arizona.
Last Thursday, before leaving for the holidays, young Thomas Conley was applauded as a hero during an assembly at his elementary school for having saved the life of one of his classmates on November 14, reported Fox News Monday.
That day, the young hero was scribbling in his notebook about dinner time when his friend, sitting next to him, started to cry while holding his throat, after having swallowed a wrong grape.
Calmly, but without missing a beat, Thomas then pulled his friend towards him to perform the Heimlich abdominal compression maneuver, a first aid technique used to dislodge an object caught in the airway.
On images from surveillance cameras that captured the gesture, we can see him performing compression without hesitation, before his comrade manages to breathe again.
“Thomas transformed a usual dinner hour into an extraordinary act of bravery, making a huge difference. Seeing his friend in distress, Thomas wasted no time and jumped into action, saving Isaiah's life from a choking incident,” the Fire Department applauded.
Little Thomas Conley, 8, (right) was applauded for saving the life of his classmate, Isaiah Rodriguez (left).
Screenshot taken from Facebook
His parents, Candice and Christopher Conley, said they were “so proud” of their boy, with whom they reportedly regularly discussed kitchen safety as two food industry workers.
They hope this story helps raise awareness of the signs of choking, as well as the importance of knowing proper first aid measures.
“I think a lot of people, maybe even some adults, may not realize when someone is choking. […] It’s great that Thomas reacted to that and that we can raise awareness about the risks of choking, because it could have been really horrible that day,” his mother told Fox News.
