CAROLINA FOREST, S.C. (WBTW) — Employees at the Eggs Up Grill in Carolina Forest on River Oaks Drive saved a woman who was choking with the help of a LifeVac.
The woman passed out while choking and the employees were able to get out the food that was stuck in her throat. According to the National Safety Council, almost 5,000 people die from an accidental choking. The most common cause is from food.
“If somebody is needing help, you gotta be there,” said Stephanie Fisher, a server at Eggs Up Grill who saved the woman’s life.
Brian Knight, another server who jumped into action said she was “deadweight.”
“She was not standing up on her own so there was no way to do the Heimlich Maneuver,” Knight said.
That’s when the manager, Ruth Waibel, grabbed the LifeVac device. It’s a device that is used specifically for when someone is choking and the Heimlich Maneuver didn’t work.
“It’s to be used after protocol. It’s a simple plunger. You push it, you pull it and it sucks out the obstruction,” said Arthur Lih, the inventor and CEO of LifeVac.
Waibel handed Fisher the device to perform the life-saving actions.
“She gives it to me and I put it on and at first I was very nervous so I didn’t do it very hard and I hear Ruth say harder, harder so I did it like two more times and I finally saw something come out,” Fisher said.
The woman woke up and was able to speak.
“I said ‘How are you feeling?’ And she said ‘I’m feeling a little dizzy,'” Fisher said.
Waibel said she’s thankful for her staff.
“It was amazing, amazing, she was awesome. My whole team was. They all came together and helped tremendously,” she said.