13-year-old Daniel Ahtonen beats the odds after stroke [Video]

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Last February, News19 introduced you to 13-year-old Daniel Ahtonen, who had suffered a stroke while at Furman Middle School in Sumter County.

Friday, Daniel’s grandmother, Rhonda Ahtonen, recalled the day no one realized her grandson was having a stroke.

“His speech was getting slurred, and he had some weakness. He was having trouble standing. They never in a million years thought he was having a stroke. It doesn’t happen to 13-year-olds,” Rhonda said.

Eventually, Daniel was taken to a hospital in Sumter, where doctors ordered a C.T. scan. The scan revealed Daniel had experienced a stroke. Because of his condition, Daniel was transported to Prisma Children’s Hospital in Columbia.

At Prisma, doctors eventually found a five-centimeter aneurysm, which they said led to a hemorrhagic stroke, something that even most adults don’t survive.

Daniel was confined to a hospital bed, …