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Coach saves choking high school student
CCTV footage captured the moment a basketball coach in Nebraska saved a high school freshman from choking in a school cafeteria. Credit: Papillion-La Vista South High School via Storyful
A camera captured the moment a basketball coach in Nebraska saved a high school freshman from choking during lunch.
It happened in the Omaha suburb of Papillion, at Papillion-La Vista South High School on April 26.
The video from the school shows the boy in a gray hoodie sitting at a corner table with other students. He appears to be holding his throat and, when he nods at a fellow student, that student calls out to get the coach’s attention.
The coach comes over to the student’s table and immediately starts doing the Heimlich maneuver, which involves applying abdominal thrusts to a choking person in an effort to lift the diaphragm and force air from the lungs to dislodge any object.
Students in the lunchroom are seen on video turning their attention toward the coach and the student while remaining calm.
After about 20 seconds, the student and coach can be seen standing up as all appears to be well.
The student, Riley Kelly, told FOX 10 Omaha that he started choking after taking a bite of a cheeseburger.
"I just didn’t chew it all the way," Kelly told the outlet.
The coach, Joel Hueser, said he’s just thankful the student was alright.
"Every two years when we have to do CPR, I’m like, ‘We really have to do this again,’ but it certainly paid off this time," Hueser told FOX 10.
The school shared a link to another local report on Facebook and congratulated the coach’s efforts.
"Way to go Coach Hueser! We are thankful for all you do!" the school wrote.
This story was reported from Detroit.