Noticing the student sitting next to him was in trouble, he asked him if he was choking and then sprang into action.
BEAUMONT, Texas — Thanks to a school tour a couple years ago and some quick thinking, a Kirbyville High School student may have saved the life of a classmate this week.
On Tuesday, TJ Roberts, a sophomore at Kirbyville High School, was in a dual credit class when the student sitting next to him began to choke, principal Leslie Williams told 12News.
The other student was drinking a from a water bottle and had the lid in his mouth. Something made him laugh and he sucked the cap down his throat, according to Williams.
Roberts, noticing the student sitting next to him was in trouble, asked him if he was choking. The student nodded and Roberts sprang into action.
From across the room, the teacher had noticed what was happening and pressed an emergency button to summon the school nurse but Roberts was quick on his feet.
Within seconds he had jumped from his seat and successfully performed the Heimlich maneuver on his fellow student, who was able to spit out the lid, Williams told 12News Thursday afternoon.
The student’s airway was cleared and he was fine, according to a Facebook post by the school.
Someone who is choking could become unresponsive quickly and even die according to the American Red Cross.
So where did Roberts learn this valuable life-saving skill? When we asked Williams if he’d learned somewhere like the Scouts or a Red Cross class she said, no.
Two to three years ago, when Roberts was in the eighth grade, he was taking a tour of the high school’s CTE programs, Williams explained.
During that tour, Kirbyville High School nurse, Megan Clark, showed the junior high schoolers a brief demonstration of CPR and the Heimlich maneuver.
She used a special vest with a ball in it that popped out during the demo and that may have grabbed the touring student’s attention, Williams said.
Apparently something definitely stuck with Roberts from that brief demonstration on a school tour more than two years ago.
The high school’s Facebook post called Roberts’ actions an “extraordinary act of kindness” and noted that they planned to honor him in September at the next school board meeting.
We had hoped to talk to Roberts, but he was already on his way to a football game when we spoke to his principal. He plays center. We’ll let you know once we do get to talk to him.
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
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