Lunch lady’s quick action saves girl’s life

Monday, March 8, 2004 | 11:20 a.m.

Quick action by an elementary school lunch lady saved a fifth grader who was choking on a chicken sandwich last month.

It was on Friday the 13th, and the day nearly lived up to its reputation for Tori Hunt, a fifth grader at Charlotte Hill Elementary School near Warm Springs Road in Las Vegas.

Tori was eating lunch with her classmates when she realized a big bite of her chicken patty sandwich had become stuck in her throat.

"I couldn't breathe, it was very scary," Tori said Friday. "I thought I was going to die."

When Tori's classmate yelled for help, food services manager Anna Puett rushed to the third-row table.

Puett said she knew immediately it wasn't a practical joke.

"Tori had her head down and her hands on her chest," Puett said. "I asked her if she was choking and she nodded 'yes.' "

Following the protocol she learned during a district training class, Puett did the Heimlich maneuver on Tori -- she pulled the girl to a standing position, wrapped her arms around Tori's waist, made a fist with one hand and with the other hand pushed sharply into the girl's upper abdomen.

"The sandwich came right out," Tori said. "She saved my life."

Tori said she learned a valuable lesson from the scare.

"You need to take small bites and chew way more before you swallow," Tori said.

Puett, who has worked for the district's food services department for five years, said she remembers wondering to herself during a training class how she would react if called upon in an emergency.

"I'm just grateful I remembered the steps," who has two children attending Hill. "I never thought I would ever have to do this to anyone."

Invented by thoracic surgeon Henry J. Heimlich in 1974, the Heimlich maneuver has become a widely used first aid technique, said Asa Marie Davis, workplace safety specialist for the Southern Nevada office of the American Red Cross.

"Even if a person has never had a first aid class they've seen (the Heimlich maneuver) on TV," Davis said. "We encourage everyone to take a class in CPR and first aid. The more you know about it the more comfortable you are when you actually have to use it."

While it saves thousands of lives every year, the Heimlich maneuver can result in injuries such as bruised abdominal muscles or even internal bleeding, Davis said. The Red Cross recommends people who have had the maneuver performed on them see a doctor afterward.

The fact that the school district requires food service workers to take basic first aid classes is admirable, Davis said.

"It certainly paid off in this case," said Sue Hoggan, spokeswoman for the district's food services department. "We are very proud of Anna."

While chicken patties are still being served in the school's cafeteria, Tori said she won't be eating one anytime soon.

"No way," Tori said. "I don't like them now."

The Clark County School Board is honoring Puett at a presentation today.