Watch DOT worker rush to help mom frantically trying to save her choking child in Utah

A quick-thinking Utah man leapt into action and saved a choking 5-year-old girl after her desperate mom pulled into a gas station looking for help, body camera video shows.

The chaotic incident happened at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 22, in the parking lot of a gas station in Draper, Utah, according to the Utah Highway Patrol.

The 42-second video shows Utah Department of Transportation worker Rob Bratton rushing to the side of a young mother as she struggles to dislodge something from her child’s throat.

“A distressed mom pulled into the gas station desperately looking for help as her 5-year-old daughter started choking in the back seat,” the highway patrol wrote on Facebook.

“Rob immediately jumped into action and performed the reverse Heimlich on the child. Thankfully, this dislodged the food that was obstructing the child’s airway and she began to breathe normally again.”

The footage, which has been viewed 20,000 times on Facebook and Instagram, was recorded from the perspective of a state trooper who arrived at nearly the same time. It shows Bratton put the child across one knee and patted her on the back until the item came out of her throat.

Bratton is part of the Utah DOT’s Incident Management Team, which works “very closely with all first responder agencies by managing incident scenes.”

“When they are not assisting with crashes or incidents, IMT is patrolling, searching for motorists that may be experiencing trouble,” the state says.

This story was originally published December 26, 2021 at 3:35 PM with the headline "Watch DOT worker rush to help mom frantically trying to save her choking child in Utah."