SOUTHGATE, Mich. – A Downriver man wants everyone to know about the busboy who saved his life.
Jerry Brohl, 79, was dining at the Ram’s Horn in Southgate a couple of weeks ago when he started choking. Brohl was eating alone when some of his food got lodged in his throat. He was in a desperate situation as he could not talk or breathe.
Fortunately for him, he didn’t have to wait for help to arrive, as help was already there.
“It was a corned beef and Swiss cheese sandwich, by the way, one of those thick ones,” said Brohl.
Brohl says he treats his food with much more respect these days. The former EMT was eating that corned beef and Swiss sandwich at a booth when some of it became stuck.
“It got lodged, so I grabbed my throat and started gesturing that I needed help,” Brohl said. “I was frightened. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t talk.”
“I saw him motioning toward his throat,” said Aaron Kay. “He was a little blue in the face, and he started waving me over.”
Kay is a 19-year-old busboy at the Rams Horn restaurant, and was the first to notice Brohl in distress.
“When I first saw it, every nerve in my body was like, ‘oh crap.,” Kay said.
Kay didn’t panic. In fact, he knew exactly what to do.
“I knew I had to do something because I knew how to do something,” Kay said.
After helping Brohl to his feet, he performed the Heimlich Maneuver.
“I came up behind him, put my hands right under his abdomen, and just pushed in and up,” Kay said.
A few moments later, Brohl’s airway was clear to everyone’s relief, and he breathed again. Kay says he learned the technique from his mom, who is a lead medical assistant at Henry Ford.
“He really did good,” Brohl said. “He did a good job.”
Thursday (Nov. 3) was their first time seeing each other since that day, and since Brohl’s heartfelt thank you to the young man who saved his life went viral.
“I was super happy he was OK,” Kay said. “That made my day to know that he was ok and posted about it.”
What are the odds that a man who spent 30 years of his life teaching and performing life-saving emergency medicine would find himself on the receiving end of that care by a 19-year-old who learned that skill as a kid?
Brohl’s hopeful more people will learn how to perform the Heimlich Maneuver or at least come to the aid of anyone they see in need.
