Dr. Oz reunites with man he revived at Newark airport
NEWARK, New Jersey (WABC) -- Dr. Mehmet Oz reunited with 60-year-old Joe whose life he saved when he suddenly suffered a heart attack in the baggage claim area at Newark Liberty International Airport.
The incident happened earlier this month in Terminal C at around 11 p.m.
Port Authority Police say Officer Jeffrey Croissant was on patrol when he witnessed a man fall to the floor in the baggage claim area.
Officer Croissant rushed to the man who was not breathing and did not have a pulse, according to authorities. He then called for back-up immediately and began CPR on the man.
Dr. Oz just happened to be returning home from Florida when his daughter yelled to get her dad's attention.
"I turned to see what had gone wrong, and I saw this gentleman had face-planted, basically, with a pool of blood under his head where he smacked onto the ground," he said.
Dr. Oz's daughter screamed for her father who came running over and immediately discovered the man had no heartbeat and had turned blue.
Authorities say Dr. Oz and several other officers flipped the man onto his back, began chest compressions, and ultimately used a defibrillator to revive him.
Joe and Dr. Oz reunited on "The Dr. Oz Show" and then gave interviews to "Good Morning America" right after.
Joe had a heart attack, but told "GMA's" Will Reeve on Monday morning that he's feeling "fine, I'm feeling 100%."
"When the defibrillator fired and I saw you jerk up from the floor and I saw you start to pink up, I just saw that glimmer of hope that we were all looking for," Dr. Oz said to Joe.
Dr. Oz said that he knew that if Joe survived, they would be bonded forever. Joe said that he felt the same.
"Thank you for the opportunity to meet you. I think that's more than what could be asked for and more than could be expected, and I'm going to take it to heart," Joe said.
Oz has used his publicity from the incident to encourage CPR and defibrillator training.
This isn't the first time Dr. Oz sprang into action. Back in 2013, he rushed to tend to a tourist who was hit by a cab near Rockefeller Center.
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