Crabapple Lane 5th-grader used training to stop student from choking

Quick thinking on the part of Crabapple Lane Elementary School student Frank Nevarez, Jr. recently saved the life of a school mate when  he administered the Heimlich maneuver as the student was choking in the cafeteria.

Above, Frank Nevarez, Jr., recently saved the life of a Crabapple Lane Elementary School student by administering the Heimlich maneuver. Photo/Submitted.

Fayette County School System spokesperson Nia Washington said it was a normal day during lunch time at Crabapple Lane Elementary, until Frank Nevarez, Jr. rushed into action to save another student’s life.

“Nevarez, a fifth grader at Crabapple Lane Elementary, was eating lunch in the cafeteria when he heard students yelling that someone was choking,” Washington explained. “He immediately turned around and noticed that a student’s face had turned bright red and the student’s pupils were dilated. He knew the student was choking.”

Washington said that despite nerves and fear, Nevarez sprang into action and began to perform the Heimlich maneuver, saving the student’s life.

“This was Nevarez’s first time using the Heimlich maneuver after learning it in his Boy Scout merit badge class called First Aid,” said Washington.

Washington said Nevarez’s parents, Marysol and Frank, Sr., are bus drivers for Fayette County and learned about their son’s heroism through several students.

“When the children on the bus told me what Frank had done, my eyes started to become teary because of the quick action that led to a student’s life being saved,” the fifth-graders parents said.

Washington said the young Nevarez was praised by the school’s students.

“Although many students call me a hero, I don’t consider myself one,” he said.