Sister plays Heimlich hero

[attach]4511[/attach]On Aaron Chhouk-Fletcher’s fourth birthday, tragedy struck.

At his own birthday party, Aaron was offered a piece of hard candy about the diameter of a nickel.

His mother Lisa unwrapped it herself, but had decided against biting it in half for him as she usually did.

Aaron, and his older brother Taylor, ran off to the bedroom to play with their cousins, leaving their mother in the living room.

Moments later, Taylor started screaming.

Lisa recalls being alerted by cries of “Mommy, mommy, Aaron’s choking!”

Immediately, she thought of the first-aid training her 14-year-old daughter Kyana had just recently received at Forest Hill Collegiate and began calling for her.

“By this time he was red, turning blue in his face,” says Lisa.

Kyana knew what to do and sprang into action, performing the Heimlich maneuver on Aaron.

“I was worried and scared that I wouldn’t be able to help him,” Kyana said.

After three to four tries, the candy was dislodged.

As soon as Aaron was able to speak again he called out “Mommy”.

The fire department arrived shortly thereafter and checked on Aaron. They recommended that he go to the hospital to be sure that nothing was damaged during the Heimlich and because the candy hadn’t actually left his body.

Fortunately, no damage was done.

Aaron didn’t fully understand the situation, other than the fact his sister had saved him.

“I think this has brought us a little bit closer,” says Kyana.

“If you asked him when he started breathing, he would say: ‘when Kyana squeezed my belly.’” Lisa added.

When she took the first aid unit in late April, Kyana hadn’t fully realized the potential usefulness of the material. After this incident, she recommends that more people get trained like she did.

Lisa is happy that her daughter had the chance to learn how to save her brother’s life.

“I’m proud of her, and I believe that (the course) should be available in all schools,” says Lisa, who is considering taking a course in first aid herself.

Kyana’s heroic efforts have brought her a lot of attention. Her teachers and principal have all expressed their congratulations. Toronto EMS has invited the Chhouk-Fletchers to their call centre for a tour and is considering presenting Kyana with an award.

“It’s one thing to have the training, but to have the ability to have the presence of mind to use the training,” says principal Peggy Aitchison. “It’s remarkable.

“There’s a four-year-old that’s alive today because a student took (first aid) training.”