Plainfield sixth grader learned the Heimlich maneuver from social media and saved a life

Shannon Morris, a nurse at Aux Sable Middle School in Plainfield, said in a news release that Sergio Escobedo was his friend’s “lucky charm” on St. Patrick’s Day.

That’s because Sergio, a sixth grader at the school saved his friend’s life that day.

Sergio had just arrived at the lunch table when his friend started coughing and choking. But when the friend turned red, then purple. Sergio knew his friend wasn’t joking.

So Sergio performed the Heimlich maneuver. It was his first experience using it, he said in an email.

“I was a little nervous but didn’t really have time to think about it,” Sergio said in the email. “Afterwards, I felt more worried.”

How did a sixth grader know the Heimlich maneuver?

“I learned to do it from the internet,” Sergio said in the email. “I saw it on You Tube and other social media.”

But staff had sent for Morris, who said in the release that Sergio’s friend was awake, breathing and no longer choking when she arrived. Sergio has since received plenty of praise for saving his friend’s life, which he didn’t fully realize until after the crisis had passed.

“I felt surprised!” Sergio said in the email. “It was just something totally unexpected.”

Sergio feels kids should learn the Heimlich maneuver because “choking is something that happens frequently,” he said in the email. An article on the United States National Library of Medicine website said “choking events” are common with children and adults and that choking can cause death within minutes.

One program that teaches the Heimlich maneuver to kids is Heimlich Heroes. This is a “practical, educational program designed for kids ages 7 and older” that uses an “interactive online lesson approach.” Since its inception in 2012, Heimlich Heroes has trained 220,000 kids and adults how to use the Heimlich maneuver, according to its website, heimlichheroes.com.

Sergio said staying calm when responding to an emergency is important, too.

“Don’t be nervous and don’t freak out,” Sergio said in the email.

Morris praised Sergio’s quick response.

“We at Aux Sable could not be any prouder of Sergio for seeing that his friend was in need and acted,” Morris said in the release.