Diner saved from choking in restaurant seeks mystery rescuer

The woman who was choking on her food would like to thank her saviour once again but never took his details. Photo / Thinkstock

A woman saved by a mystery man as she choked at a Tauranga restaurant is hoping to be reunited with her hero.

The 59-year-old Rotorua woman, who spoke on condition she was not named, said she had gone to Tauranga and was eating lunch at The Naked Grape with some friends on February 18 when she began choking on a piece of bread.

"I started coughing and just couldn't stop and was struggling to breathe."

She said she got up from her table and was leaning over a railing in the restaurant trying to clear the obstruction.

"I started feeling pins and needles in my hands, arms and chest and my fingers also started curling.

"I just thought, 'This is it, this is the end of world for me for sure'."

The woman said other patrons were trying to help her and then suddenly she heard a man's voice loudly telling people "to get out of the way".

The man then came up from behind her and performed first aid.

"I have been told it possibly was the Heimlich manoeuvre but whatever he did, it worked, although nothing came out of my mouth."

The Heimlich manoeuvre is an emergency technique where the rescuer stands behind a patient and uses his or her hands to exert pressure on the bottom of the diaphragm to try to expel an object stuck in the windpipe.

The woman said her rescuer, who had been seated at the next table, went back to his table to carry on eating as if it was an everyday occurrence.

"It made me think he might have been an off-duty paramedic or policeman.

"There is no doubt in my mind I wouldn't be alive to talk to you today if it wasn't for this man. He is my hero. I wouldn't wish this to happen to anyone else. It was a really scary experience."

The woman said although she did not seek medical treatment, she had a sore throat and it hurt to breathe for a couple of days afterwards.

"I also had bruising on my stomach which looked like I had gone nine rounds with Mike Tyson.

"I did say thank-you to my rescuer but unfortunately I didn't get his name when I left the restaurant and I'd love to be able to thank him again."

The woman's sister-in-law said her sister-in-law was a "very, very lucky lady" thanks to the man's quick actions.

"We don't know who you are but you are our hero. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I couldn't imagine not having her around as she has been my rock since my husband died eight years ago."

If anyone knows who the woman's hero is they can leave their contact details at the Bay of Plenty Times offices in Durham St and they will be passed on to the woman. APN