This is the story of a 4th grader who saw a classmate in peril and went above and beyond to save their life. She’s one of the bravest nine-year-olds that you are ever going to meet, that is for sure.
Her fellow students at Racine’s Fratt Elementary School in Madison are definitely grateful that she stepped in. It all started during lunchtime one day.
Essie Collier happened to notice that one of her classmates seemed to be in distress. She was not about to let the moment pass, either. She knew that she had to act and that she had to act quickly.
“I just saw that she was holding her neck, and I rushed up there as fast as I can,” Essie, according to WFAA According to her teacher Samantha Bradshaw, Essie was quick to do what needed to be done.
She wrapped her arms around the student and began to perform the Heimlich. It only took a few moments before her airway was cleared and the crisis was averted. It’s the sort of story that makes you wonder how this little girl managed to spring into action so quickly. There are a lot of adults out there who probably would have frozen up and hesitated in the face of such a terrifying moment.
Bradshaw was certainly surprised by what she saw and had to note her response time. “I have never seen a student react in that way before,” she said. Of course, that leads us to the obvious question. Where did this child learn how to perform the Heimlich maneuver?
As it turns out, Essie had seen an instructional video about the process on YouTube.
She watched the clip when she was seven years old and was somehow able to retain the knowledge during the following years. We cannot believe that the lesson stayed with her but we are certainly glad that it did. Our heart goes out to the child that she saved as well, as we are sure that this was a terrifying moment for them.
Essie deserves all of the praise that she is getting for this act of heroism and then some. The kids are certainly all right, aren’t they?