Three-year-old Millie Wise was with her grandmother Sandra Longmoor at a McDonalds in Middleton Grange shopping centre in Hartlepool, Teesside when the incident happened.
According to a Mirror report, while eating a chicken nugget, Millie choked on it and began convulsing. Eventually the tot lost consciousness.
Instead of rushing to the toddler’s aid, however, other diners at the restaurant whipped out their smartphones and began filming her.
Sandra started screaming for help then, but the staff at the McDonalds failed to clear the blockage in the tot’s throat.
Thankfully, Steve Dawking, Middleton Grange’s emergency first aider was immediately alerted and quickly found Millie.
According to the Mirror report, Steve was able to dislodge the piece of nugget by leaning Millie forward and slapping her hard on the back.
"When I arrived Millie was past the choking stage and was unconscious,” he recalled. “I leaned her over and slapped her on the back four times.
“There was still no response.
“I had one last chance to remove the blockage. I slapped her with as much power as I could given she is a small child.”
Find out what happened to Millie on the next page!
Steve said that the nugget came out like a bullet.
While the ordeal was happening, the shopping center’s staff kept people away, including those who were taking photos and videos.
Minutes after the incident, Millie regained consciousness; a paramedic said that she could have died if the blockage had been left five seconds longer.
The toddler was then rushed to the hospital for a check up, but thankfully there were no further complications and she managed to make full recovery.
As for Millie’s mom, she has some strong words for those people at the McDonalds who didn’t help her daughter.
"It is unbelievable that people would watch a thing like that and their first instinct was not to call help but to take pictures and video,” said Claire Wise.
"I hope the people who did use their phones to take photos and video have the decency to delete them and I hope no one will share them on social media.
"I am disgusted that people recorded such a traumatic incident while my mam and Millie were suffering such an awful ordeal.
"I am so grateful to the security guard, the staff and other members of the public who came to help, without them I couldn't imagine would might have happened."
READ: Toddler chokes to death after swallowing Kinder egg toy
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