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Harrowing footage caught the moment a schoolboy almost choked to death in a school canteen, seconds after he was joking with his friends.

Luckily for young Will Olson, classmate Ian Brown had been given first aid training and quickly recognised he was in terrible danger.

School CCTV shows Ian leaping to his feet and grabbing Will around the waist.

He then performs the Heimlich manoeuvre in a desperate bid to dislodge the food stopping his friend from breathing.

On his fourth attempt Ian was successful and Will could breath again.

The frightening scene unfolded at Central High School in La Crosse, Wisconsin in the USA, on Wednesday.

According to the La Crosse Police Department, Brown had been trained as part of the agency's Police Explorer program, which introduces young adults interested in a career in law enforcement to the basics of policing, including first aid training.



In a news release, the school's nurse credited the training Brown had received through the Police Explorer training with averting a "very dangerous situation."

Speaking to WEAU 13 News after the incident Ian said: "When his face started turning a blue purple, I was like, 'ok he's actually choking.

"I said you know I’d rather have you bruised and banged up than have you dead.

"I said that that was my number one thing, is that I’m either going to break some ribs or I’m going to hurt you somewhere else but at least you're going to be alive to tell about it."

And Will was pleased he had a friend like Ian around.

He added: "Someone cracked a really funny joke and I just took a deep breath in and that's when I started to choke.

"I felt scared, I thought I actually could possibly die, and when I saw Ian actually get up and start doing the Heimlich, I felt better, I felt safer.

"I felt like I could have a better chance at living.

"I feel thankful that I had Ian there.

"He had the training no one else did, and I was just really really lucky he was there at the time."