Levi Hanna: Teen rugby player who always had 'funny side' dies after being hit by car on way back from school
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA: After being hit by a car in Gympie last week, a 14-year-old boy described as "kind, adventurous and full of laughter" died at Queensland Children's Hospital. Levi Hanna, a student at Gympie State High, had just gotten off the school bus with his younger sister Scarlett, 12, when the collision occurred February 1 on Tin Can Bay Road near the Grimley Road intersection in Canina.
After the terrible collision, the Hyundai i30's 27-year-old female driver was reported to be "distraught." Levi's parents, who reside 100 meters from the location of the collision, hurried to the scene while he was receiving treatment, reports The Australian. His mother Lilly Zrehen and stepfather Kiltan Kleemann referred to the adolescent as "an extraordinary young man," in a statement they released on February 5.
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Levi created Youtube videos, played football, and loved animals
"He could always see the funny side of everything and he would always make us smile, and is still doing so via his secretive YouTube and Tik Tok videos, which he and his friends created," they said. Our boy loved all his friends, his fishing, and footy [football]. He was always so close to nature and animals, any creature that moved he would want to pick up no matter how slippery, slimy, scaly, or hairy."
As per ABC, the family reported that Todd Hanna, Levi's biological father, and Levi had maintained contact with each other "where many special times were had." He also loved spending time with his stepdad Kiltan who "taught him everything from riding his first pushbike, which then turned to motorbikes, learning to drive a car around the farm, driving the tractor, chopping wood and becoming the capable clever little man he was."
His mother claimed that the family planned numerous additional adventures. "I know you will be with us," she said. "We will catch you … that barramundi you always wanted to catch." Levi had gone to Fraser Island, his favorite destination, "dozens" of times in 14 years. He had also visited Uluru, Cape York twice, and "all the amazing places in between. He was fortunate to have seen some of the most beautiful places that Australia has to offer," his family said.
Levi played for the Mighty Devils since he was 7 years old
Levi has played for the Mighty Devils since he was seven, the Gympie Junior Rugby League club claimed on its Facebook page. Last season, he was a member of the under-14s team. "Tonight we will be holding a gathering down at the clubhouse for anyone wanting to say farewell to our little legend Levi," the club wrote on February 4. "Please come dressed in your favourite fishing or footy gear and don't forget the Akubra."