A 9-year-old boy is being praised for taking action after he heroically saved his little cousin’s life with the Heimlich maneuver.
In an interview with WREG, Timothy Prather noticed that his 3-year-old cousin Conner seemed to be choking while the two were at a rodeo in Tennessee with their grandparents. And when his grandparents struggled to help the 3-year-old, Timothy jumped in to save the day.
“He was just crying and stomping his feet and holding his throat,” Prather told the Memphis-based news station WREG. “Our mam-maw had him upside down and our pap-paw was patting his back. That’s how I knew something was wrong.”
Conner had a piece of candy lodged in his throat and, thanks to a poster demonstrating the Heimlich maneuver in his school’s lunchroom, Timothy knew just what to do. According to Healthline, when performed correctly, the Heimlich maneuver pushes air out of the person’s lungs and makes them cough, ideally moving the object out of the airway.
Boy Learned the Heimlich Maneuver He Used to Save Cousin’s Life Via a Poster Hanging in His School’s Cafeteria
The third-grader then dropped down to his knees, performed the maneuver and the candy became dislodged. “I took him, and I started pushing his stomach, like this,” recalled Timothy.
The life-saving poster was posted in the Ramer Elementary school cafeteria and in classrooms by kindergarten teacher Brandi Wardlow. “We never know when they’re watching, what they’re picking up on,” said Wardlow. “To think this little poster here saved his cousin’s life, it’s amazing.”
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The story was originally shared on Facebook by WREG and it resulted in the online community praising little Timothy for saving his family member’s life. One person wrote, “Great job young man. You’re a hero!”