When a 12-year-old girl went to school with her twin brother, neither of them knew that there day would turn tragic.
But now, one of the paid is being hailed a hero. And it all started in the cafeteria.
During lunch at Leicester Middle School in Massachusetts, Amelia Loverme found herself in the terrifying position of having to save her twin’s life during lunch.
When Charlie Loverme began choking on a slice of cheese, Amelia immediately sprang into action and performed the Heimlich maneuver on him. The ordeal, which was captured on the school’s surveillance video, showed Charlie struggling to breathe before his sister stepped in and saved him.
Charlie Loverme, 12, right, and his twin sister, Amelia, share a high-five following a baseball game. Photo from YouTube
“I was just really scared because I didn’t know if I would be able to get it out of my throat or if it would just be stuck there,” Charlie told “Good Morning America.”
I thought I was going to pass out, or like die.”
“I just knew that I needed to help him, or try and help him,” Amelia told “GMA.” “I didn’t know how to do it either. I just did what I thought was right.”
According to the American College of Emergency Physicians, the Heimlich maneuver is designed to be used on people ages 1 and older, specifically when a person is not able to speak, cough or breathe. The maneuver involves reaching around the waist of the person choking and placing one clenched first above the navel and one below the rib cage. Holding the two fists together, push “backward and upward under the rib cage six to 10 times quickly.”
Charlie Loverme, 12, was saved by his twin sister Amelia, right, when he began choking in their school cafeteria. Photo by ABC News.
Charlie was able to remove the cheese from his mouth after just a few abdominal thrusts.
Christy Ruth, Charlie and Amelia’s mom, said she is “grateful” that Amelia was looking out for her brother.
“If you can help somebody and you can react regardless of if you’re nervous or not, you should,” said Jason Loverme, the twins’ father.
Adults should talk to kids about life-saving stuff like this.”
Amelia has since earned recognition from the school’s committee, with the local police chief and the district attorney now working together to award her even further.
“This is the stuff you hope and pray never, ever happens to one of your children,” Ruth said. “Kids need to pay attention and look out for one another, and I’m just grateful that Amelia did.”
The incident has strengthened Amelia’s bond with Charlie. He had a message for his sister, saying “I would just say thank you because I’m still here.”
This incident follows the case of Garrett Brown, an 8-year-old who was honored for saving a classmate choking on a chicken nugget. Brown received a “hero award” at a special assembly by Lakeview Elementary School in Oklahoma.
The American Red Cross offers guidelines for similar situations. In case a person is choking and cannot cough, speak, or breathe, one should bend the person forward, give them five back blows, give them five abdominal thrusts, and try CPR if the person remains unconscious and they are still choking.
Amelia’s quick thinking and bravery serve as a reminder that sometimes simple actions can make all the difference. Her actions inspire us all to make sure we are prepared to take action in an emergency and look out for those around us.
For more on her heroics, watch below.
