A star Albertville High School athlete is recovering after being struck by an automobile Friday night.
According to reports, the outstanding Albertville cross-country runner, Daniel Leija, was running with a group of other runners on a trail in Guntersville when he was struck. The incident took place near the intersection of Highway 69 and Sunset Drive. Leija, the 17-year-old defending Marshall County Cross Country champ was airlifted and taken to Huntsville Hospital, where he reportedly has undergone three surgeries so far. As of Sunday morning, Leija was awake and communicating.
Reportedly, there’ve been many “near-misses” at the same trail crossing – city leaders have previously recognized that crossing as being a safety issue for local runners and walkers. Guntersville was reportedly waiting on funding from a pending Transportation Rehabilitation/Improvement Program grant to help make the crossing safer.
