When a fellow fifth grader began choking on a taco at lunch Tuesday, Jacob Burger did not hesitate.

The 11-year-old jumped from his seat, began striking the boy on the back and, when that failed to clear the obstruction, wrapped his arms around his friend Hunter Costenbader and performed the Heimlich maneuver until the food came free.

The incident unfolded in the cafeteria at Towamensing Elementary School, and the entire sequence was captured on surveillance video, footage that left the school’s principal struggling to put what she had witnessed into words.

“I was shocked. I was amazed for (Jacob’s) age to be able to react that quickly and to do the Heimlich while he was yelling for help,” Principal Kelli George said. “He didn’t think twice. He just reacted immediately, which was mind-blowing to me.”

Burger said the moment Hunter started showing signs of distress, something clicked.

“Honestly, nothing was going through my mind, because I just knew what to do,” Burger said.

That knowledge came from his older sister, Autumn, an eighth grade Palmerton student, who had recently completed a CPR and first aid course and came home eager to share what she had learned. Autumn, Jacob said, is hoping to become a nurse and she practiced the techniques on her family members.

“She came home and she was doing it for us and showing us how,” Burger said. “That’s why I knew how to help (Hunter).”

It was not the first time Jacob had seen the maneuver performed. At a New Year’s party, his “Pappy” choked on a piece of steak, and Jacob watched his father intervene successfully.

Still, Tuesday was the first time Jacob had ever found himself in the role of rescuer, and he said the nerves were real.

“I was scared and nervous,” he said. “I just took deep breaths.”

Jacob said he yelled for help as he performed the maneuver, and staff arrived quickly.

“My heart was racing but I’m so glad I was able to help,” Burger said.

For Costenbader, the moment was frightening, but the experience changed how he thinks about emergency preparedness. His mother is a nurse, and in the days since the incident, he said seeing a peer respond so effectively made an impression.

“I was glad that kids actually know what to do when something like that happens,” he said.

The two had been friends before the incident. When asked what he said to Jacob afterward, Costenbader’s answer was simple: “I just thanked him.”

George said the episode reframed how she thinks about first aid training in a school setting.

“We teach all the academics that we need to teach, but to teach a life-saving act — to be able to do it and to save a friend — is obviously top-notch,” she said. “To be a good person and to react and to save a classmate, another human being, is the most important thing.”

She added that even if a similar situation arises in the future, she has no doubt Jacob would respond the same way.

“Whether it’s his friend Hunter, whether it’s me, anybody — I feel he would react immediately,” she said. “Saving someone’s life is his top priority.”

Burger is scheduled to be recognized at Palmerton’s school board meeting Tuesday night. When asked what advice he would give other kids who might find themselves in a similar situation, he kept it brief.

“Take classes,” Burger said. “You might think it’ll never happen to you, but it can and it does. These classes definitely do pay off.”