Odds. But because they need specialized treatment, they must spend the first few months of their lives in the neonatal intensive care unit. When those beautiful girls were born, that family was very scared. Mom would stand over by the window with the bed many feet away, and we were just working with her to come over and to touch the girls and to know where she could put her hands in a place that wouldnt hurt them. Reporter finally, at 7 months old, the girls are deemed Strong Enough to go home to sacramento. Despite aidas 24 years as a mother, nothing could have prepared her for this. This is her feeding. So were giving her 8 ounces what is shes getting, erika. Reporter even the simplest of tasks like bath time, and putting on clothes, become an exercise in patience and creativity. So these were the little clothes that they wore. These were the little gowns that were made, trying to keep them dressed. Something cute is what i wanted to put on them. Velcro is a godsend, right . Right. Reporter like other kids they hit all their first milestones but they do so together. This is from their first words. Nana nana . Up up reporter to learning how to stand. Very nice, i appreciate that. Reporter not wanting to leave their specialized care, they must make the nearly threehour journey to palo alto regularly for checkups. Even during those uncomfortable car rides. The girls remain upbeat. They begin to develop their own personalities. Eva, the talkative one. Erika, the observer. But eva also becomes stronger and larger than her sister, off then drag, even throwing her around. Over time, their Health Starts to decline. Whats been the most trying time . All the utis. Theyre throwing up, theyre dehydrated. Eva. Sister stay, dont bounce. The month of july, we were in the hospital practically the whole month. Reporter erika kept getting weaker and weaker. She was just basically getting smaller. Eva was getting bigger. That was their point to say, we really have to do something about this. Reporter with concern mounting, the family and doctors decide they need to separate the 2yearold girls now. Were you able to explain to them at their age what was going to happen . I would always role play. When some magics going to happen and dr. Hartman is your magician. Reporter only 250 separation surgeries successfully performed in the world, doctors tell the sandovals theres a 30 chance one of the twins could die. Was there ever a part of you that thought this might not work . A very small part. Knowing the girls, how much what theyve gone through, theyre fighters. Reporter its finally the morning of the surgery. The twins are their usual bubbly selves. Ready to go now. Reporter two hours later, when they arrive at the hospital, reality sets in for the sandovals. They place their faith in god. And their babies in the hands of this team of specialists. The nearly 50person medical team begins with a prayer for guidance. We will work together, a prayer for strength. Reporter in a nearby room, the sandovals and dozens of family members join in. Our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. I felt a calmness come over me that it was going to be okay no matter what, what the outcome was. Reporter after four hours of careful prep, its now time to begin the separation. Theyve made the first incision. Reporter the surgeons plan is to separate the organs of the chest first, then move down to the abdomen and finish with the pelvis. Theyre hoping that the twins shared leg can be given to erika. As the hours pass, the doctors encounter a few surprises. Erikas small intestine joined evas small intestine just before the large intestine. Is that a problem . Actually, you can be fine with just small intestine. Reporter having overcome that challenge, they continue the delicate dance of dividing the girls organs. They were able to give split the bladder, so they each have a bladder. Reporter every step a daunting task. One false move could spell disaster. The big challenge is then closing that wound. Thats the real risky part. Reporter when we come back, aida and art are given difficult news. Its just like a punch in the gut. Reporter the long hours of waiting and that moment that brought everyone to tears. When youre close to the people you love, does psoriasis ever get in the way of a touching moment . If you have moderate to severe psoriasis, you can embrace the chance of completely clear skin with taltz. Taltz is proven to give you a chance at completely clear skin. With taltz, up to 90 of patients had a significant improvement of their psoriasis plaques. In fact, 4 out of 10 even achieved completely clear skin. Do not use if you are allergic to taltz. Before starting you should be checked for tuberculosis. Taltz may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. 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If we can use patients genes to predict Heart Disease in their families, imagine what we can do for the conditions that affect us all. Imagine what we can do for you. 2yearold conjoined twins erika and eva sandoval are undergoing an intense separation surgery. The past five hours, 13 surgeons at Lucille PackardChildrens Hospital have had to carefully coordinate their every move, performing a difficult and delicate dance. And then finally theyre two now. Reporter the prayers of their parents art and 8 deaida answered. The twins successfully separated. But the work of dr. Hartman and his team is far from over. It seems like the most dramatic piece of the procedure and people are all focused on that. But thats just like step 34 of 50 or 60 steps. Reporter the Surgical Team now faces a new hurdle. They realize they dont have enough skin to close the girls wounds. So they turn to that onceshared leg they were hoping to give to erika. Its now needed for something more crucial, its skin tissue. They had told us earlier that they may have been able to use that third leg and give to it erika. But when it came down to it, there wasnt enough tissue to cover erika. That was really hard. You know, its just like a punch in the gut. Reporter but despite that setback, the rest of the surgery goes as planned. And after a total of 13 hours okay, were good. Reporter the twins are wheeled into recovery. So tell me about the first time that you guys saw the girls after the surgery. I was excited just to know that they were alive still. Just to know see them breathing. Reporter after spending their first six nights recovering in separate beds, the girls are reunited. In the weeks that follow, erika, the oncesmaller twin, is now thriving. She makes tremendous progress at physical therapy. One, two, three she has figured out with this totally new body how to be really mobile really fast. Reporter but the road to recovery is not as easy for eva. Eva. One two there so with eva shes had a lot of pain, also anxiety. So a lot of our sessions are focused on trying to get her in more of an upright position. Do you want to go see eva . Yeah. Reporter ever her sisters keeper, erika tries to comfort eva. Its okay, its okay. Reporter through it all, aida is mostly parenting solo. I was working. I could be on the road all week. Reporter art, whos had to keep working fulltime back at home to cover the medical expenses, drives the three hours every weekend to visit her and the girls. Ill do what i have to do to make things work. Its our life. And we adjust to it. And we keep on going. Reporter the hospital becomes like home for the girls, who havent been outside in two months. Can you see the clouds moving . What do you see in the clouds . Elephant. You see an elephant in the clouds . Here we go. Outside. Outside. Mama . Im right here. Look at sister. Reporter finally after three months in the hospital, a breath of fresh air. An ambulance, while often a sign of tragedy and fear, on this day is one of hope. All right you made it look at you. Reporter erika and eva are making the journey home to sacramento. You ready to go . Yeah. Reporter in the care of their local hospital, the girls continue physical therapy. Hold on to your wheelchair. Reporter and are fitted for wheelcha wheelchairs. There you go, see . I just think its amazing that were at this point with them in their lives, you know. And feeling sick is not going to hold the other one back. Reporter now theyre free to roam at home. I love it reporter where for the first time erika can go one way and eva can go the other. You guys play so nicely together. What is the best part in all of this . I love bringing them home and being a family. Their smiles. Reporter mom and dad are settling into a new routine. Here we go. Bye, friends reporter with every scoop or step they surpass all expectations. Good job. You want to move your leg closer. Reporter no one was certain they would make it this far. This is actually the first that ive seen them both standing up like this. These girls are as healthy as they can be right now. Theyve gone way past what i thought they could do at this time. Reporter but they still have many challenges ahead. The girls have been on feeding tubes since birth and are just now getting used to eating solid foods. Theyre also not able to be fitted for prosthetic legs. But dr. Hartman is hopeful that one day they can. Yeah, we dont have a prosthesis right now that would work on a girl who has a complete pelvis, but nothing, no hip joint on that side. Who knows what were going to have in five years or ten years. You think walking is not out of the question . Yeah, watching what they can do now, i think anything is possible. Reporter the girls are embracing their independence as typical toddlers full of curiosity and mischief. Somebody who was supposed to be taking a nap got down from her crib. Reporter but that connection they once shared, never far from memory. Eva will see her, she goes, my sister was right here. Yes, your sister was right there. We do talk about it. She took my leg. She did say that, she took my leg. Wheres your leg . Erika took it. Reporter after two years living as one, theyre about to celebrate their 3rd birthday. Their first as separate individuals. Im going to be woody reporter at a party full of family and friends happy birthday to you reporter the girls dress as woody and princess sofia. And even though theyre on their own, in some ways theyre still inseparable. I love watching them. They know that all these people are there and theyre going to play with them. Whether they have a disability or not, its just being with people and doing kid stuff. Are you ready . Go, go, come on, eva, go, go, go reporter the girls fiercely fighting to be just like any other kids. Would you do it all over again . I would. Yeah. Maybe a little younger. I know that god wont give you something you cant handle. There is nothing that these girls cant do. They are fully capable of doing anything. Reporter for nightline, im linsey davis in sacramento, california. Our thanks to linsey. Well be right back. Ahhhh they can fly. Travel at the speed of light. And command the currents. They dont need another way to get around. Or do they . [ engine revving ] with incredible flavors, like new Nashville Hot shrimp crispy, spicy, and drizzled with sweet amber honey. Plus the delicious classics you love, like garlic shrimp scampi. Try all the shrimp you want, however you want em. But hurry, it ends soon. Im gonna get ya, get ya, get ya, get ya one day maybe next week, im gonna meet ya im gonna meet ya, ill meet ya depend real fit briefs feature breathable, cottonlike fabric. 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E is for everyone. You get a companion ticketes visaevery year. Card so why not take. Me . I mean i always spell your name right. Seriously, take me, i cant listen to this playlist any longer. Im thinking mexico, and im a quick packer. dog panting another 2am stroll, huh . Im worried. I have this medical bill. Dave, you have anthem, and they have people to talk to who are empowered to help answer any question you. dog grunting, panting is. Is he okay . Real people . Living and breathing. Hopefully not breathing like that. For all the things that keep you up at night, Anthem Blue Cross has a solution. Finally tonight, special thanks to the sandoval family. They taught us a lot about faith. Hebrews 11 1 faith is the substance of the hopeful, evidence of things not seen. Thanks for watching abc news. As always abcnews. Com and our Nightline Facebook page. Thanks for the company, america. Good night. Now from abc 7, live breaking news. A Welcome Break from the wind tonight, as firefighters, working double, even triple shifts, try to get a handle on the ferocious flames threatening so many north bay communities. As we get a look at the devastation these fires left behind from above, tonight, abc7 news is learning about troubling allegations involving dozens of Senior Citizens who may have been left by staff as the flames moved in sunday night in santa rosa. A captain doesnt leave the ship unless hes the last one off and stepping off of it. Good evening. Im dan ashley. The death toll from the wildfires in Northern California is up to 31 now, after the sheriff announced two more deaths in the county for a total of 17 in sonoma county. This is new video where flames are burning up to highway 29. The director of cal fire says every fire burning in the state has received an influx of new resources today, allowing many firefighters to get muchneeded rest. Tonight, a brother and sister who helped rescue dozens of elderly residents from santa rosa sunday night are demanding to know where were the employees as the flames spread. Melanie woodrow is live with troubling allegations tonight. Melanie . Reporter dan, a spokesperson for the facility says that all 400 residents are safe. Theyre accounted for. But the grandchildren of one of those residents, who helped rescue 70 of them, is concerned that others may still be looking for their loved ones. That brother and sister we spoke with helped load those 70 elderly residents onto two of the buses you see behind me. These are pictures of flames devouring the oak mont Senior Living community on Fountain Grove parkway in santa rosa. 3 30 morning, audrey went to check on his grandfather. When i walked in and saw those people, i and the looks on their faces, i knew that i needed to be the answer. Reporter he says there were two women in the lobby who he assumed were employees. He discovered his grand father wasnt in his room, but dozens of residents were in their rooms, many of them behind locked doors. Back in the lobby, he says the two women he thinks were employees were now gone. He called his wife, who called 911. When the Fire Department arrived, he insisted the firefighters break down doors where they found more residents sleeping. The repeated question was, how come nobody told us that we were evacuating and from the Fire Department is where is the staff, where is the master key . Reporter in a statement, the management says we were not stopping anybody from helping save lives that night. We had not set up any road blocks at the time or preventing anybody from coming in at the time. Reporter management says Reporter Police called for two golden gate transit buses. Driver david may. Code free. Reporter with 70 residents waiting. Some with walkers, wheelchair, and we started loading. Im just glad i had the opportunity to help. Reporter he worries they didnt open every door in the main building. There were two other buildings that sustained smoke damage. His sister found their grandfather at a shelter. I said, papa, how did you get here . He said i left with the manager in his car. Reporter a huge effort was made. But why didnt nobody stay behind to ensure that everybody was evacuated . Reporter thats a question oak mont Management Group hasnt answered. Oak mont Management Group says it remained in contact with authorities throughout the night to make sure that