VIDEO – Fourth Grader Rescues Choking Classmate: ‘I’m Just Happy She’s Alive’

A fourth grader in Racine, Wisconsin, knew exactly what to do when a classmate was in serious trouble on Tuesday.

Essence Collier was enjoying lunch at her elementary school when the situation turned dangerous, but that did not phase her at all, WISN reported Saturday.

“I just saw that she was holding her neck, and I rushed up there as fast as I can,” the 9-year-old recalled.

A teacher named Samantha Bradshaw saw Essence go into emergency mode when she ran across the room to help.

“I see her go to the other student and wrapped her arms around her and performed the Heimlich maneuver on her,” Bradshaw commented, adding, “I have never seen a student react in that way before.”

It took mere seconds for the classmate’s airway to clear and for her to resume breathing normally.

Many people die every year due to choking, which is the fourth leading cause of unintentional death, according to Healthline.

“However, there is a simple technique you can use to help expel a trapped object from another person’s airway. You can even use a version of this technique on yourself,” the site read.

“Abdominal thrusts lift your diaphragm and expel air from your lungs. This causes the foreign object to be expelled from your airway,” it continued.

Essence learned the skill from a video for children. When asked why she immediately took action to rescue her classmate, who was choking on a Cheeto, she said, “I really didn’t think much of it. I’m just happy that she’s alive.”

Meanwhile, social media users praised the little girl for her courageous effort, one person writing, “That’s awesome! Great job. She’ll be in a caring profession some day: the sky is the limit young lady!”

“HERO and a role model for all of us!” another person commented.