The Lesson That Helped An 11-Year-Old Save His Friend's Life

An 11-year-old boy in New Hampshire managed to save his friend's life while she was choking, thanks to a lesson that his dad taught him.

According to local news network WMUR, Jack Mongeau was sitting in his science class at Merrimack Valley Middle School when his classmate, Bella Moran, began to choke on a lollipop.

Mongeau told WMUR that she began putting her hands around her throat to indicate to him that she needed help.

"She was trying to say, 'Help me, help me,'" he said.

Luckily, Mongeau had recently learned how to perform the Heimlich maneuver from his father, who is a licensed nurses aide.

"I just, like, pushed like that four or five times," he told WMUR.

"I stood in front of him and he pushed in on my stomach a couple times, and then it came out," Moran told WMUR.

Her father, James Moran, was also grateful that Mongeau was able to jump into action so quickly.

"Very grateful and thankful to his dad for teaching him that," he told WMUR. "That's pretty awesome."

The Heimlich maneuver, of course, is a life-saving technique that you can employ if time is of the essence — which it usually is in cases of choking. If someone around you is choking, there are a few steps you can take to perform the Heimlich maneuver:

1. Stand behind the person and wrap your arms around their waist.

2. Make one of your hands into a first and grasp it with the other hand, right above their belly button.

3. Press your fist upwards into their stomach.

4. Repeat this move four or five more times, as Mongeau did, and if the person is still choking, do so five or more times, and perform CPR if the person loses consciousness.

Mongeau is hesitant to call himself a hero, his dad told WMUR, and he's just glad that he was able to help his friend.

"I knew he would help me because he's my best friend," Moran told WMUR.