news-record.com

The Oak Ridge couple who had their baby in a minivan beside Bryan Boulevard on Valentine’s Day — and the 911 operator who talked them through the birth — will be featured on “The Dr. Oz Show” March 11.

“It’s been crazy. We thought this happens all the time, but we’ve been amazed by all the publicity,” said Jeremy Engel. “Everyone remembers the birth of their child, but this one was definitely a story that will be told again, again and again.”

Jeremy and Amber Engel, along with Guilford Metro 911 operator James Greer, will appear on an episode of “Wildest Medical Emergencies Caught on Tape.”

Amber’s water broke at 7 a.m. Feb. 14 as they got into the van to go the hospital. Weaving through rush hour traffic, Jeremy was flashing his lights and honking his horn, but Amber realized they weren’t going to make it. The baby’s head was already visible when Jeremy pulled over on Bryan Boulevard and called 911. With guidance from Greer, Jeremy helped Amber deliver a 7-pound, 3-ounce boy named Colin.

Greer recalled Jeremy being quite agitated when he received the call.

“He told me the baby was being born right there,” he said. “I’ve had one other live birth I took over the phone, but it wasn’t this fast.”

Jeremy had to unwrap the umbilical cord from Colin’s neck but had no other problems. Colin is doing fine, Jeremy said. They gave him the middle name Bryan, after the boulevard.

Two days after the birth, the couple received the call to appear on the daytime talk show and the following week they flew to New York for the taping with Dr. Mehmet Oz.

“We were all pretty nervous, but Dr. Oz came in before the show, sat down with us and just talked to us,” Jeremy said. “Normally you think of celebrities as being nice on TV, but they’re probably going to be a little standoffish or aloof in person. But he was just the nicest guy, put us right at ease.”

Their appearance on the show also marked their first meeting with Greer.

“Dr. Oz asked us, 'Have you met the 911 operator yet?’” Jeremy said. “I said, 'No, we’re going to see him on Monday.’ And he said, 'Well you don’t have to wait, here he is.’ And I was shocked. I thanked him, shook his hand.”

Greer said he was glad to be able to help.

“The vast majority of our calls here are from people who’ve lost something, lost property either through crime or fire or something like that,” he said. “So it feels good to see something with a positive outcome.”

Contact Robert C. Lopez at 691-5091 or robert.lopez@news-record.com