A birthday dinner for a Fairfield High School senior turned into a terrifying scramble to save her grandfather’s life on Friday, October 9, when 75-year-old Brown Campbell began choking on cheese from his French onion soup at Jag’s Steak & Seafood. Four restaurant employees jumped in with the Heimlich maneuver, CPR and an emergency suction device, working until paramedics arrived and Campbell started breathing again.
Campbell’s family had gathered at the West Chester Township restaurant to celebrate his granddaughter Sophia’s 18th birthday when the cheese became lodged in his throat, according to wlwt.com. His daughter, Christine Gorczyk, said four Jag’s employees ultimately saved her father’s life during the emergency. Her husband, Slawomir Gorczyk, and Jag’s server Chris Barnes, a former Marine who served in a life rescue unit, each attempted the Heimlich maneuver on Campbell, but the obstruction would not clear and he lost consciousness.
Restaurant managers Monica Zestermann and Jennifer Matheney moved Campbell from his chair to the floor, and Jag’s staff checked for a pulse when they could not find one. Zestermann, Matheney and Barnes took turns performing CPR while another employee grabbed a suction device to try to clear his airway. One of Gorczyk’s daughters called 9-1-1 as the effort continued, and Dayton Daily News reports that Jag’s server Ryan Roberge stayed with the family to help keep them calm while his coworkers worked on Campbell.
Why the Standard Rescue Maneuver Didn’t Work
Doctors later told Campbell’s wife, Sheila Campbell, that the Heimlich maneuver hadn’t cleared the blockage because the cheese was too stringy to be expelled the way a piece of hard food normally would. WLWT reports the restaurant’s staff also used an emergency anti-choking device called a LifeVac as part of their response, continuing their efforts until West Chester Township firefighters arrived and took over his care…