Former OKC City Employee Shares 72-Day Hospital Battle With COVID-19

A metro man said he's lucky to be alive after spending months in a medically-induced coma.  He was near death with a severe case of COVID-19.

Mike Overturff said he tested positive for the virus last fall. What began as a minor cough and fever turned into a nightmare experience for him and his family.

"I woke up and I actually thought I was having a heart attack," Overturff said. "I couldn't breathe."

After feeling sick last September, Overturff tested positive but his symptoms began to worsen.

While Overturff and his wife were on their way to the emergency room, he couldn't even make it to the car.  He was out of breath.

Overturff instead called an ambulance. When he arrived at the hospital, doctors tried to put him on oxygen and a CPAP machine but neither helped him breathe better.

"I think the day that really got me the most is when they came in and told me they were going to put me on a ventilator," Overturff said.

He was on the ventilator for 49 days and put into a medically-induced coma.  He was hospitalized for 72 days.

When he finally woke up, Overturff said his wife was holding his hand and asked him what month it was.

"I thought, ‘OK, I was out two or three days and she told me, ‘No,’” Overturff said. “She said, ‘You've been out since November.’ I said, ‘What?’”

Overturff worked with the City of Oklahoma City for 34 years and worked as a field operations supervisor. However, because of his battle with COVID, he was forced into early retirement and is still dealing with the effects to this day.

"I want people to take this and see that miracles still do happen," Overturff said. "Because I consider myself a miracle."

Overturff said he and his family are now vaccinated and urges everyone to get their shots.