A Long Island school food monitor believes it was her maternal “instinct” that saved a second grader who started choking on a slice of pizza.
Francesca Augello, who has been a school lunch assistant at Wood Park Elementary School in Commack for six years, was making her usual rounds in the cafeteria on Friday when one of her students was about to take the day off, NBC New York reported. report.
“He was just staring at me, so I asked if he was okay. He didn’t respond,” Augello told the magazine.
That’s when the horrified teacher noticed 7-year-old Grayson Molina choking on his food.
“I could tell at that moment that he was choking because he just opened his mouth and couldn’t speak.”
The mother of three quickly sprang into action and administered the Heimlich maneuver on the boy, unclogging his throat and ultimately saving his life.
“I’m a mother. My natural instincts kicked in and I did what I had to do. I saw a child in need and I helped him,” Augello said.
The aide and the student reunited Tuesday in the cafeteria, where the seventh-grader said he was “grateful” for Augello’s help.
“She saved his life,” said an emotional Alexa Molina, Grayson’s mother. “She did exactly what she would have done if she were her own child, so our family is forever grateful.”
The aide’s actions did more than simply intervene to save the second-year student’s life.
“It makes me proud to be here knowing that people are thinking about other people and caring about others and wanting to make sure they’re okay,” the boy’s father, Paul Molina, told the magazine. .
“They’re like family, and they actually care and love the kids just like we do,” the mother said of the aides who work at the Long Island elementary school.
Grayson, who was feeling fine after being rescued by Augello, told the outlet that he will always remember to chew his food more thoroughly and will skip pizza for lunch.
The parents emphasized that although the incident with their son had a happy ending, the Heimlich maneuver should be seen as an example of a technique that everyone working with children should know.
new york state The law requires at least one staff member in every school building to be “trained in administering the Heimlich Maneuver” and “to be present in the same room while students are eating.”
The most common cause of nonfatal choking in young children is food.
At least one child dies from choking in the United States every five days, and more than 12,000 children are hospitalized each year with injuries from choking on food. New York State Department of Health.
Children can choke on many foods, but parents should also be aware that the size, texture, and shape of the food can pose a risk.
