MANNFORD, Okla. — A school bus driver and teacher’s assistant here saved a 5-year-old student from choking with the Heimlich maneuver and is being hailed a hero.

School bus surveillance video shows the boy turning red and gasping for air while Ginger Maxville is behind the wheel. She told KTUL that at first she thought he was teasing her and refusing to sit down, but she soon realized that something was wrong. The boy’s sister told Maxville that he swallowed a coin, and Maxville quickly jumped into action. She explained to the news source that she secured the bus and started performing the Heimlich maneuver on the boy, and he coughed up a penny.

Maxville added that this is the first time in 17 years that she has used the skills she learned during CPR training. She is being called a hero by many, but Maxville said that keeping students safe is part of her job, according to the news source.

She also told KTUL that the boy asked to keep the penny, and she gave it back to him after he promised to never swallow another coin again.

Dr. Steve Waldvogel, the superintendent of Mannford Public Schools, told ABC News that the video had been sent around the district so his staff would know what to do in a similar situation. He added that the video spoke volumes for Maxville’s character, and “We just try to find the best people and we’ve got one.”

Watch the news story and video footage obtained by KTUL here.

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