Restaurant Owner Saves Choking Customer, Video Shows

EL MONTE, CA — The owner of a Los Angeles County restaurant recently sprang into action to save one of her regulars from choking, according to reports.

It was a busy Sunday on May 31 at Carnitas Y Chicharrones El Gallo on Garvey Avenue in El Monte, when Maria Molina was called to assist with a customer who was choking outside, KABC reported.

Water wasn’t helping, so she did the Heimlich maneuver and was able to dislodge the food from the choking man's airway after a few attempts, according to KTLA, which reported the customer thanked her for saving his life.

Video of the harrowing assist was circulating on social media.

“He was choking on food, so I just reacted,” Molina told KABC. “It was so scary. It was really scary, so I just knew I had to do something.”

Molina had never taken a CPR class, but now she and her employees plan to learn CPR, KABC reported.