One second they were hanging out, laughing, at a company picnic. The next, one of the group was gesturing frantically that he was choking.
Will McDermott ’18 is interning for a second summer as a legal assistant at the law firm of Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker, LLP at its White Plains office.
A group of fellow employees was enjoying their meal at a late June gathering, when McDermott noticed the person next to him get wide-eyed. He followed his gaze, only to see the man across from them seize up, grab his chest, and then raise his hands to his throat in the universal pantomime that means “I’m choking!”
“At first I thought he might be having a heart attack or a stroke, but once he made that choking motion with his hands, I knew immediately what the problem was,” he explained.
McDermott had learned the Heimlich maneuver as part of a first aid course when he was a lifeguard. He knew exactly what he had to do.
He stepped behind the man, gave him three quick abdominal thrusts, and out popped a chunk of steak.
The man who choked recovered quickly and thanked McDermott profusely for saving his life.
“I tried to downplay it,” the 21-year-old said, modestly. “He told me, ‘Oh my God, man, you saved my life.’ But I told him he would have been OK anyway, that he would have coughed it up on his own. I didn’t want him to be embarrassed.”
It was McDermott’s first time performing the Heimlich on someone.
“I just knew exactly what I had to do,” he explained. “I’m grateful I could help”
This life-saving economics major will be heading back to Siena at the end of summer. He is a CURCA scholar, a rugby player, and is also earning a pre-law certificate. He plans to pursue a career in law, like both his parents.
And maybe save a life now and then…
