> your eyes depend on a unique set of nutrients. >> that's why there's occuvyte. ">
> your eyes depend on a unique set of nutrients. >> that's why there's occuvyte. " property="og:description">
> your eyes depend on a unique set of nutrients. >> that's why there's occuvyte. ">
really be great with children? but first, the "nightline 5." >> your eyes depend on a unique set of nutrients. >> that's why there's occuvyte. a unique formula that's just not found in any leading multi vitamin. >> help protect your eye health with uccuvite. it's lobster fest. red lobster's largest variety of lobster dishes all year. dueling lobster tails or lobster lovers dream a delicious reality. hurry this won't last long. >> number one in just 60 seconds. good evening. it is a wrenching dilemma. your child is born with the anatomy of both a boy and a girl. these children used to be known as hermaphrodites. now they're called intersexed. in the hospital there's often pressure to perform surge rye right away to make the gender clear. but tonight you're going to meet someone who grew up and concluded the choice that was made was wrong. here's my "nightline" coanchor juju chang. >> reporter: it's the first question when a baby's born. is it a boy or a girl? sometimes the answer isn't that simple. >> they told me that he was intersex. >> reporter: meaning born with both male and female genitals. pamela and mark crawford weren't bothered by the fact that the baby they were about to adopt was intersexed. >> that seemed like no big deal. >> reporter: it's more common than you might think. roughly 1 in every 2,000 babies are born interseconded each year. there's no protocol how to treat inter intersex the children. doctors are doctors have quote-unquote fixed it by choosing one gender or another. parents are questioning whether that's the right thing to do. >> i said don't let him get the surgery, he hasn't gotten the surgery, has he? >> but he had, after his 1st 1stbirthday. south carolina. he had been transformed into a girl. but it's clear even in toddlerhood he felt and acted like a boy. >> he says, i feel weird, i don't think i should be going into the girl's restroom. >> reporter: he's now 9 years old. we've been asked to keep his face off hyme cam. >> he could play with this stuff for hours. >> reporter: his brother says his little brother was robbed of his right to live as a man. >> what happened to him was unnecessary. unjust. unconsented. >> and he's been castrated so that is likely to have lifelong impact. irreversible. >> reporter: 35-year-old sifa says he knows all about irreversible. like emcee he was born intersexed. a doctor assigned him female but it led to years of agonizing cushion. >> at what age did you question your gender? >> until 7 i thought i was a boy. >> reporter: he grew up in the bronx wearing catholic schoolgirl uniforms. even went to the prom. it wasn't until college sifa started to ask serious questions. that's when he got ahold of his medical records. >> initially, they had written that i had ambiguous genitalia. they checked it. but then they scratched it out and put that i was normal. then i felt betrayed. >> you were kept in the character. >> of course. >> reporter: he says he had no idea he had undescended december tee testes, no idea a surgery turned him biologically into a girl. his mother says she trusted the doctors and condition sented to the procedure. years later sifa felt like a man. in his mid-20s he decided to live like one. as a result, every week he must inject himself with testosterone. >> i have a fear of having moon b man boobs. >> these people are not disordered. they're just a bit different. >> reporter: protesting against premature operations performed on children. arguing intersexed people should have the right to decide for themselves when they're ready. sifa agrees. >> i feel like i need to wear a suit. >> reporter: now is getting ready for an occasion more than 20 years in the making. >> this is it. this is like a big moment. >> reporter: he is about to meet with the doctor who surgically removed his testicles at age 13. transforming him into a girl. with his mother's consent. a surgery he says he never wanted. >> i probably have a whole bunch of emotions that come up. he's the surgeon, signature right here. terry hensell. >> reporter: dr. herry hensle. what would you say if you were face-to-face with him today? >> i think i would ask him questions. because he's a human being. and i think human beings make mistakes. >> reporter: turns out he's still practicing and a professor emeritus at columbia university. he says new parents with an intersexed baby are often desperate to have their child fixed, surgically turned into a boy or girl as fast as possible. >> have you had parents thank you for intervening early? >> all the time. >> what do they say? >> well, "thank you for big me my little girl." >> reporter: the photos are too graphic to show on television but dr. hensle wanted me to see how ambiguous these cases can be. >> what do you tell mommy that is? >> uh -- yeah what is that? >> reporter: sifa argues in his case, there was no medical urgency. but many doctors argue doing it younger can avoid painful scarring down the road. both physically and emotionally. >> i think it's more parents' anxiety about information being disseminated about their "abnormal" child. >> reporter: the very definition of gender normality is evolving. >> a person's biological sex is not determined -- does not determine their gender. >> right so gender is not genitalia? >> it's not. it's in the brain, it's in the spirit, it's in the heart. >> reporter: nowadays gender identity is more open. but in sifa's time it was kept quiet. >> the criticism that is, these doctors are playing god. >> no. i used to. and i really liked it. but it wasn't the right thing to do. >> there's a real sense that if patients, even patients from 20 years out, were listened to, were heard, that that would be a big step forward. >> huge. i totally and thoroughly 100% agree. >> jimmy: we asked dr. hensle if he'd meet with sifa. >> you'd be open to that? >> sure. >> reporter: today atlanta to new jersey for the meeting. >> i think it feels so surreal. i haven't seen this man in 20-plus years. >> what makes you nervous? >> i have the stories of so many people. >> that you're walking in there with. >> yeah. >> reporter: sifa says he never had a chance to be heard. now that's about to change. >> terry hensle. hi. >> hey. >> reporter: before the dialogue begins dr. hensle tries to shut down the interview. >> something gets said and it's just the wrong twist i can't let that happen. i can't. i can't. i hope you understand that. >> reporter: sifa calmly and gently refuses to take no for an answer. >> if you had it to do all over again, if you saw me as a baby with ambiguous genitalia -- >> i would bring to it a gender committee who would talk about the pros and cons. if you have testosterone you have a male brain. a male brain is a male brain is a male brain. >> reporter: these days many hospitals rely on a gender committee which decides the course of action. >> the point is that what happened to you, it was done not out of malice. not out of lack of thinking about it. it was done because that was the state of the art in 19 whatever the date was. i wanted to make sure that you understand that our learning curve has increased dramatically. >> reporter: that's when i joined the conversation. >> i'm wondering if you think fits out there, or you yourself who have some remorse about some of the surgeries that were done? >> no i have no regrets. now, would i have done things differently? shull. but i don't have -- i was dealing in my heart of hearts with what i thought was the right thing to do. >> so what did you think? >> i think it was so interesting, that moment when he said that he didn't have any regrets. i was like, wow. and i guess, you know you would have to do that in order to not -- to avoid feeling. >> reporter: we asked dr. hensle to clarify his lack of regret. >> if you want the truth, i don't feel regret about it. because i did the best i could do based on what i knew. >> reporter: because there's no clear protocol on how to treat intersexed children, these operations are still happening. which is why the crawfords are suing doctors at medical university of south carolina and the state, claiming they assigned their adopted child the wrong gender. the case involving their son emcee could potentially provide a first of its kind precedent-setting ruling. we reached out to the hospital where the surgery was performed. they declined our request for interview but issued this statement. musc will vigorously defend in this case with a propond rans of evidence that will also serve to explain why musc does not accept the information as alleged." >> there was no justification for mutilateing his genitals. that's what they did. they removed his penis. they did unnecessary surgery on a happy, healthy kid. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm juju chang in charleston, south carolina. coming up here on "nightline," a big busy bridge suddenly gives way. and tonight, the untold stories of survival. later, he's a 175-pound pitbull. the internet loves him. but would you let him near your kids? 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>> the search continues at this hour -- >> red cross volunteers have been on the scene -- >> reporter: it was a disaster that spoke to one of our most primal fears. the ground under your feet giving way. august 1st 2007. minneapolis, minnesota. the i-35 bridge, 115 feet up in the air, collapses seemingly out of nowhere. 13 people died. it was a huge national story and one that i covered personally. >> they're going to have to remove tons and tons of concrete and steel -- >> reporter: and now many of the people who survived the collapse are telling their stories of survival. >> i can see out my windshield. i can see the bridge going down and all the cars going down with it. >> reporter: as part of a new abc series called "in an instant." >> i heard it. >> i could see the roadway going up and up. >> reporter: which combines eyewitness testimony with vivid recreation to explore the heroism, the shock, the loss and the will to live. >> i had debated taking a different route that day that would kind of veer me off of dealing with the construction traffic. >> reporter: lindsay walsh commuted across the bridge every drar at 6:05 p.m. prime rush hour, everything changed. >> i made it to about the middle of the bridge when i heard a snap. a beam. a clank. it was a very distinct sound of metal just snapping in half. and i was in free fall. >> reporter: jeff wingate was working construction on that bridge the day of the collapse. >> the next thing i knew i was in the river. half laying on the bridge deck, half in the water. and then there was just people screaming everywhere. >> reporter: while jeff watched the horror unfolding, which included a school bus dangling from the bridge lindsay was fighting for her life. >> i accepted that that was where i was going to die. >> i was knocked unconscious briefly. after i came to i got up. i pulled a few of the people jeff saved was lindsay. >> i kicked and i hoped. and i reached the surface. and i gasped for air. >> over here! grab this broom! there you go. >> he saw me and he fished me out with a broom handle. >> i pulled her up out of the water and she was hurt pretty bad from what i remember. >> you're all right, i've got you. >> there was all kinds of chaos noise above us. there was helicopters, there was sirens, there was smoke. just -- everything. >> they are actually on the top of the bridge -- >> reporter: nicole olsen was at home watching live as her husband was fighting for his life during the collapse. >> the surreal feelings that you're in at that moment almost like time standing still. >> reporter: she describes her enormous relief when she finally saw her husband on tv. >> look! there, there! >> i was just hysterical. there he was. >> reporter: one common thread among the survivors, they all helped one another. as gary babineaux told me after the collapse. >> are people throwing the h-word at you, hero? >> it's what anyone, really, would do. in a time like that you've got to help the people that need it the most. >> reporter: during an investigation the ntsb cited a major design flaw in a plate that held sections of the bridge together as the cause of the collapse. the new bridge reopened a year later. and jeff had a hand in the construction. >> i worked on that project. worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week on that job until it was done. >> a little more than a year after the deadly bridge collapse in mihm, a new bridge opened today. >> reporter: today, all these years later, the gratitude of the survivors is palpable. >> our baby was born 15 days after the bridge collapse. and it turned out to be a boy. >> just the other day i was laughing uncontrollably. i was like, whoa. i haven't done that in a while. so life is very different. >> i think i've finally put the pieces back together. >> i'm so, so incredibly thankful that i'm here to see them and to be with them and to be there for them. it made me really appreciate what i have. >> "in an instant" premieres this friday at 9:00 eastern on abc. up next on "nightline," there's a reason they call him the hulk a pitbull who weighs 175 pounds. do you think you could take this guy for a walk? huh, fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that. well, did you know pinocchio was a bad motivational speaker? i look around this room and i see nothing but untapped potential. you have potential. you have...oh boy. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. pitbulls are sometimes in the news for tragic reasons. but you're about to meet a pitbull making headlines because he is a gentle giant. and his owners say this breed can actually make great family pets. even so, trying to take this particular pitbull for a walk is not easy. just ask abc's sarah hain. >> hello! how are you? >> reporter: it's not easy to get busy new yorkers to stop in their tracks. but this dog has what it takes. meet the aptly named hulk. >> you're a beautiful dog. >> reporter: he may just be the world's biggest pitbull. weighing in at a whopping 175 pounds. hulk became a sensation when his owners, marlon and lisa posted videos online to show that pitbulls can be family dogs. ♪ [ dog howling ] >> reporter: the hulk's best friends? marlon and lisa's 3-year-old son jordan. now the hulk is taking over nyc. >> what's the name? >> hulk. >> reporter: and doing what any tourist would do. getting pampered. >> everyone can use a little polish polish, even hulk. >> reporter: this 18-month-old "pup" might not be done growing. >> they grow until they're about 3? >> yes. >> how big do you think he's going to get? >> 190 in about a year year and a half, fair to say. >> reporter: owning a dog this big does have its challenges. >> what does his meal look like? how much food is it? >> he eats about 50 pounds of dog food per week. >> reporter: but marlon says hulk is a gentle giant. >> he's cute balanced friendly, loving dog. >> reporter: he's hoping hulk can prove to the public that pitbulls can be loving pets. >> he's the perfect ambassador dog for this. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm sarah haines in new york. >> he is a great ambassador. this question for you, does your family pet have any unusual qualities? you can head over to our facebook page and tell us all about it in the comments. i for one have a cat who has four teeth. thank you for watching abc news tonight. tune into "gma" first thing in the morning. online 24/7 at abcnews.com as well. thanks again for watching and good night. [dramatic music] ♪ ♪ >> yo-ho! ho! [cheers and applause] yeah! uh, uh. i'm terry crews, and i'm ready to make some people very, very happy today on millionaire. [cheers and applause] as a self-defense teacher, our returning contestant knows how to handle stressful situations, and he's brought more killer mental moves to help him today. from timberlake, north carolina, please welcome abraham thornton. [cheers and applause] >> all right. >> uh, how you doing? >> excellent, man. excellent. >> good to see you. >> it is good to be back, terry. >> wow, you are doing so well right now. but see, being that you know all your self-defense moves, what should a woman learn from you if she's walking alone or going home late? >> well, we actually have in krav maga, which is the discipline that i take something that we call the krav maga handshake. >> okay. >> go for the groin. >> ah. >> [laughs] >> ah, that's how you do it, huh? >> absolutely. >> my kids know to do that even when we're playing around. [laughter] dude, what are y'all doing? ah! >> we'll teach you a dozen different ways to do it. >> well, listen, just to recap you are still working your way through round 1. you've banked $16,500