NEWNAN, Ga. — A teenage Chick-fil-A employee is being called a hero after coming to the aid of a 3-year-old girl who was choking on a coin she had swallowed in the parking lot of the restaurant in Newnan last week.
Liliana Leahy told Channel 2′s Tom Regan she was in her car ordering food on the restaurant’s mobile app when she heard Theia gasping in the back.
She had swallowed a British pound coin.
“The second time, she was making that sound, I said, ‘Are you okay?’ And when she didn’t answer, I ran right away. I got her out and I just started smacking her back. I panicked and thought, if I can’t help her, somebody else has to be able to help her,” said Leahy.
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Leahy, a professional photographer, yelled for help from workers in the drive-thru lanes of the restaurant.
“At that moment, I dropped my iPad and ran directly toward Theia,” said employee Mia Velez.
Velez, 18, performed the Heimlich maneuver on the child. It is a technique to dislodge objects from someone’s airway by thrusts on the abdomen.
“I just bend down directly on my knees and started giving the Heimlich and in three thrusts, the coin had just fallen out,” said Velez.
“When it came out, I knew she was going to be okay,” said Leahy.
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The mother believes the fast food worker’s fast action saved her daughter’s life.
“Absolutely, she did. 100%,” said Leahy.
Velez says she learned the Heimlich and CPR while she was in high school. She encourages others to do the same. She also doesn’t consider herself a hero.
“I’m sure anybody would have done the exact same thing I did. I’m grateful I was the one who was able to do that for them,” said Velez
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