"nightline,". >> good night. good evening. thanks for joining us, i'm juju chang. the numbers are staggering. here in the u.s., more than 270,000 cases of covid-19 that we know of. more than 7,000 dead. but there's also this, a growing sliver of hope. and those who've teetered on the edge and recovered. tonight, stories of the journey back. after 22 days, the father of three, reuniting with his family. our cameras capturing his homecoming, after the fight of his life. >> we were pretty sure he wasn't going to make it. >> what was the first thing you said to your daughters? >> and-yold,ft alst two weeks on a ventilator. his first breaths on his own.

>> oh, tanner! >> his first words. >> can you say hi, in the face of this vicious virus, the road to recovery. stories of struggle and inspiration. the doctors and nurses who risked their own lives and families who were separated but never far away. sometimes there are no words, just tears. amanda is waiting for her husband. >> it's the longest five minutes of waiting i've ever done in my fe itill behe fst time she's been able to touch him since he was admitted to the hospital more than three weeks ago. >> wow, look great! >> ooh, hoo, hoo, >> it's a reunion they both

feared he wouldn't live to see. >> you want to go home? you okay? i love you so much. >> what was that moment like for both of you? >> it was the most joy i've ever felt. it really was. it felt like everything was whole, finally again. >> felt like busting out of jail. >> here you go! you look like a different person. >> covid-19 r h unable to breathe for himself. now his doctors and nurses all there for his sendoff. >> so that, as a nurse, it makes it worth it, you know, risking our lives, coming here every day, just seeing that reunion of a husband and a wife. that was pretty special. >> that reunion at the hospital setting the stage.for an evenor.

>> daddy! >> yay! >> where the father of three was reunited with his daughters. >> what was the first thing you said to your daughters? >> that i loved that daddy was fighting to come back to them. and then the hugs, i just wanted to get out. so every day was like a, for me, was like a fight to get out. so i can get home. >> at the end of a week where we've seen the youngest victim, a six week old baby die of covid-19. >> our hearts break for that family. >> and the oldest, still thlen record numbers, we're learning more about the

virus, who it targets and why they are at risk. >> patients coming in requiring oxygen and sigi significant interventions that i normally don't do at that age. >> case continue to skyrocket. in new york city, one out of every five people hospitalized is under the age of 44. in philadelphia, more than half of all cases are those under the age of 49. >> i have to say that in my career, it's monot often that i intubate someone under the age of 40 who has an otherwise normal medical record. that's really rare for that to happen. for it to happen often now is what's shocking me and >> tonight, the journey back. twfali. tw a 26-year-old, after 12 days on a ventilator, surprising his parents. >> my wife and i have been

holding our breath for the past two weeks, just knowing whether he was going to make it or mono. >> a father returning to his wife and kids in suburban virginia. >> what's it like holding hands again? >> amazing. we're not normally touchy-feely, but i can't get enough of it. >> i'm sure. >> it's a day i thought wouldn't ever come. >> tetu remembers feeling sick after a trip to new york. he was hospitalized a week later on march 11. >> he was still in bad shape. temperature of 104 and just miserable. >> tell me that moment, amanda, where you had to leave his side. >> i got in the car and drove away without him, and i just felt panic, just like why and how? how could it possibly be us of all people? >> i'm just letting god take this. the fear's been overwhelming.

and i'm trying to have faith, and that's been some relief to me. >> less than 24 hours after tetu was brought to the hospital, his doctor says he had to be put on a ventilator. >> it was impressive how quickly he developed severe lung failure. >> amanda, what's it like when the health care workers are your only lifeline to know what's going on with your husband? >> they got to know me. they knew my number on the phone when i'd call. they'd put the phone on speakerphone and put it by his head so i could talk to him and it tell him good night every night. whether he could hear us or mott not i don't know. >> tetu, do you remember those calls? >> no. >> but his nurse says those calls matter. >> she would say be stronger, be stronger. >> she tells me every time she called in on speaker his oxygen levels went up. >> that would happen, too. that's why family's very important, you know. people recognize their wife's

voice more so than they recognize mine, a stranger. and so you do see them improve. >> tetu was the first in his hospital to receive the experimental drug remdesivir. but a week into the hospitalization his condition took a drive. dr. osborne had to put him on a special machine called an eckmo to lighten the load on his heart and lungs. >> there were a pfew days we wee pretty sure he wasn't going to make it. >> it was touch and go. >> yeah. in a way, my stubbornness kind of got me back here. so if i wasn't as stubborn as i am, i probably wouldn't be back here. >> but you felt like you were on the brink? >> yeah, i felt it wasn't my time to go yet. >> right. the days and weeks added up, leaving amanda at home. their oldest daughter also

testing positive for the virus. she developed a slight fever but is luckily doing fine. >> for us it doesn't change a whole lot, because she is asymptomatic, as are the rest of us. >> it took weeks before tetu showed signs of improvement. >> they've been able to wake him up. >> he opened his eyes. >> he opened his eyes. he was squeezing their hands when they told him to. this is amazing. this is a miracle. >> during one of her pohone cals another small miracle. >> the doctor happened to be in the room and he's like, look, his eyes are fluttering while she's talking. i lost it. >> when you're put being a loved one on a speakerphone, that's not just sentimental, they're responding to it. >> yes, yes. it's amazing. >> it shows you the power of family and the power of love. >> in los angeles, it's a father, daryl ramos young, who's waiting anxiously for a call. his son is in the hospital. >> it is the 19th day of my

son's covid-19 infection. day nine of him being on a ventilator. >> taylor, a young and healthy flight attendant with no pre-existing conditions came down with covid-19 symptoms last month. >> he stated that he had a slight feever. so he was told by the doctor to go ahead and isolate at home. >> days later he went to the er to be tested for covid-19. but by then his symptoms had grown so severe doctors admitted him into the icu. >> his oxygen levels kept falling. the next thing they had it to do was put on the full oxygen mask over him over his nose and mouth. he was uncomfortable, having panic attacks. >> good morning, sunshine. we're hoping you had good rest. >> because the virus is so contagious, taylor's parents and two sisters, jessie and nikki, were not allowed into the icu. instead, the hospital allowed them to videoconference with

taylor. >> watching my son over a computer screen in icu and not being able to be there with him is the most horrifying experience you could have. i'm pleading with him and trying to encouraging him, saying taylor, taylor, you've got to do this, you got it. you don't want to go on the ventilator. it should be the last resort. but it was too exhausting for him to bear. that's when he decided that the best thing for him would be to go on the ventilator instead. one of the hardest things is when he's asking, if i go on the ventilator, do you know how long i'm going to be on it? try to be positive. it will be a day or two. we'll see you when you wake up. and -- >> at that point, taylor was no longer able to communicate with his family, but doctors and nurses continued to call daryl, placing their phone by taylor's bedside. >> hi, taylor! we all love you.

and i know that you're working hard it to get bert antter and . >> day after day. they offer him words of encouragement and support. >> love you, taylor. >> love you! >> we know that you can be strong and that you can be brave. >> taylor's the most wonderful guy with a giving heart. he is always thinking of other people. he is known for having this enormous love of ice cream! he also has a really sarcastic whit that everybody really enjoys. he just is a real gem of a young man. >> despite the severity of the situation, daryl remained hopeful. >> i planted some little finger carrots here so maybe in a couple months we'll have something large muenough to eat and maybe share with taylor when he's out of the hospital. >> always a little difficult

waking up in the morning, because it's another day of the unknown. and it's always a little bit terrifying when you do receive that phone call, because you're anxious, because you want to hear how your loved one's progressing, but you don't want to answer it because it could be bad news. ♪ >> up next. >> hello, this is daryl. >> the phone call that interrupts our interview and changes everything. >> yo, taylor! hey, taylor! >> say with us. ng you. and ask your doctor about biktarvy. biktarvy is a complete, one-pill, once-a-day treatment used for h-i-v in certain adults. it's not a cure, but with one small pill, biktarvy fights h-i-v to help you get to and stay undetectable. that's when the amount of virus is so low it cannot be measured by a lab test. research shows people who take h-i-v treatment every day and get to and stay undetectable can no longer transmit h-i-v through sex. serious side effects can occur,

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the financial impact of covid-19 commonly called coronavirus. but we want you to know that there is help. we have disability insurance for workers who are ill or medically quarantined due to covid -19. paid family leave is available for those caring for an ill or medically quarantined family member and unemployment insurance for reduced hours or lost work. we're all in this together. for information on how to stay healthy visit covid19 dot ca dot gov.

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st ♪ this is the call daryl ramos young has been waiting for. >> hello, this is daryl. >> his 26-year-old son taylor has been on a ventilator for the last 12 days, in the fight of his life against covid-19. the doctor has thrilling news. taylor is now breathing on his own. >> oh, that is awesome! >> what was the doctor saying to you? >> she was stating that they're pulling the tube out of his throat at this very moment, because his vitals are looking very good earlier. >> oh, is he up? >> when he was actually pulled ofth ventilator. >> thank you so much.

>> apparently, the whole ward also cheered. because it was a big success for him and for all of them as team members, having a patient successfully removed from the ventilator. >> i'm just so thankful for the medical staff, and for all the people who have been supporting us in prayer. and well wishes. just so thankful. >> good day. >> it's a good day. >> it's a good day. >> 30 minutes after taylor's breathing tube is removed, another call. >> hello, this is daryl. >> this time a special voice on the other end. >> hello, taylor? hey, oh, taylor! hey, good morning! we are so proud of you! you've done such a good job pulling through.

we know it's hard pour yfor you talk right now, but we want to make you know that we are embracing you with great big l. >> love you, taylor, just say hi, mom and hi dad. i want to hear your voice. >> you know, we know that you've been -- >> i want to hear his voice. say hi, mom. can you say hi, mom? >> hi, mom. >> oh, awesome! taylor, we know that you've been so busy flying across the country, and it's been hard pfo you to catch any bit of long sleep, so i think you've made up for that now. you slept for a good amount of time. you've been sleeping for 12 days. so we're glad that you are up and you are going to be fully recovered real soon, okay? we love you, son.

>> congratulations, guys. >> the doctors and the nurses say that they'd like to hold onto him for one more day to make sure he is doing good and definitely not out of the woods yet, the numbers of infected individuals, those numbers are real. there's a face to those numbers. and so if people don't help stay at home and be safe at home and wash their hands and do whatever they can to help control the spread, the next number could b. >> for amanda and tetu, the journey back home took nearly a month. and while it was long, tetu knows the story is bigger than

himself. >> it's giving home to other people. there are good stories out there. because there are not just bad stories. my next thing is to learn how to re-learn how to walk again. >> i didn't realize you were unable to walk. can you explain what's going on? >> he lost so much muscle tone being in an induced coma for two and a half weeks, and prior to that he had been in bed at home a week. >> you should expect over six months to a year to regain your former level of function. >> i would imagine family is the best medicine. >> absolutely. >> that's biggest motivation for me to get out. >> tetu says his family was the driving force that kept him from giving up, making way for that amazing reunion with all of his girls. >> is it nice to have daddy back? >> yeah. >> tetu, your message was

daddy's fought his way to get back to you. >> yeah, i was fighting to get back to them because i want to be here with them. if i leave this world, i wanted it to be with them. >> what was that for you, to see the father of your children back in the brood? >> i watch the video back from when they were here, seeing them running out to him and him taking it all in was nice to watch. i keep looking at him and keep saying i'm so glad you're home. i'm so glad you're home. >> seeing the pure love in amanda and tetu and how happy they were. we need to hear that, that it is possible to recover from the most devastating version of covid-19. >> i hope that he really is an inspiration to other families and patients who are going through this, because tetu's not going to be the only survivor we have. he's going to be the first of many success stories.

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. ♪ they say it's always darkest before the dawn, but tonight as we struggle through the covid-19 pandemic, our it tireless health care workers are planting seeds of hope so that more of us can join the ranks of the survivors. so many of us across the country saying safe at home to say we will get through this together. that's "nightline." thanks for staying up with us. "jimmy kimmel live" is next, have a safe weekend, good night, america. ♪ pa, da, pa, pa, da, pa, pa, da, pa ♪ ♪ jimmy kimmel live >> from his house. hi. i'm jimmy kimmel.

today is monday, march 130th. what year i don't know. we are back on television with the first of what is hopefully a limited series we call "jimmy kimmel live from his house." and this is my house. it's the only room in my house that's not completely crusted in play-doh right now. i'm also not making these videos on my ipad anymore. i got a whole system now. i've got three cameras. i've got basically the same setup they use to shoot pornos here. the only thing i don't have is people. everything is being operated remotely tonight. from space. mike pence is controlling this show from the mars rover right now. i hope you had an okay weekend. i had a chilling thought last night. i hesitate to even mention this because i feel like if -- i don't know. i feel like if i do it won't happen. so i'm going to mention it. as bad as this all is, and i'm not talking about the serious stuff, people dying, i'm talking about the inconvenience of staying at home, there is one thing that can make it a lot