d+ Walking the Halls, Still Standing: Inside Hunter Alexander’s Ongoing Fight After a Devastating Electrical Injury. d+

On a quiet hospital corridor, a young man with bandaged arms and medical tubing trailing behind him took slow, deliberate steps forward. To a passerby, it might have looked like an ordinary moment of recovery. But for those who know what Hunter Alexander has endured, it was something far bigger — a hard-won victory in a fight that is still far from over.

Hunter, a 24-year-old lineman, remains under intensive medical care after suffering severe electrical burn injuries to his arm and hand while working to restore power. The injuries were catastrophic enough that, in the earliest hours after the accident, doctors feared he could lose the use of his hands — or worse. Today, he is still here. Still walking. Still smiling, even as another major surgery looms.

Doctors confirm that Hunter’s pain is currently being managed with intravenous Tylenol and additional high-strength medications. While the worst of the initial crisis has passed, the damage left behind by electrocution injuries is complex and unforgiving. Surgeons have already been forced to remove small sections of muscle from his left forearm, along with damaged tissue from his right thumb, in an effort to stop the spread of tissue death.

Seeing recent photos of Hunter, it is difficult to reconcile the image with how close he came to losing everything.

And yet, in the middle of IV lines, dressings, and constant monitoring, Hunter experienced what his family describes as one of those days that feels small to the outside world — but means everything when you’ve been through trauma.

He was up on his feet. He walked the hospital halls. He even made a careful loop outside the building, feeling fresh air on his face for the first time since the accident. The pain was still there. The injuries were still very real. But so was his determination.

For a brief moment, when several of his fellow linemen stopped by to visit, Hunter looked like himself again. Not a patient defined by burns and surgeries, but a young man who climbed into a bucket truck to bring power back to strangers — and paid a brutal, life-altering price for doing his job.

“He smiled,” his family shared. “And for a second, it felt normal.”

Hunter’s father, Daren Alexander, has been by his side throughout the ordeal, watching each small milestone with a mixture of gratitude and anxiety. He confirmed that occupational therapists have begun checking Hunter’s fingers and introducing early exercises as doctors continue fighting to preserve function in his hands. Every movement matters. Every response is watched closely.

One small but meaningful step forward came when Hunter’s central line was removed — a sign that his condition has stabilized enough to ease some of the most invasive monitoring. In a journey measured in inches rather than miles, it was a moment worth celebrating.

Hunter even found the energy to give a heartfelt shoutout to his nurse, Megan, whose steady care has helped carry him through the darkest stretches of recovery. It was a reminder that even in the middle of suffering, gratitude still has a place.

But the road ahead remains daunting.

A fourth surgery is scheduled for tomorrow. Surgeons will perform another irrigation and debridement procedure, carefully cleaning damaged areas to prevent infection and assess what tissue can be saved. Depending on what they find, skin grafting may begin — a significant step that signals progress, but also introduces new risks and challenges.

Electrocution injuries are notorious for their unpredictability. Damage often continues beneath the surface long after the initial event, and surgeons must balance aggressive intervention with cautious preservation. Each operation carries weight. Each decision could shape the rest of Hunter’s life.

“This fight isn’t over,” his family says. “Not even close.”

And yet, days like today matter.

After injuries that could have taken his arms, his future, even his life, Hunter is still standing. He is still walking hospital corridors with bandages wrapped tight. Still pushing himself forward despite pain that does not fully relent. Still showing the quiet resilience that defined him long before this accident.

As Wednesday’s surgery approaches, loved ones are asking for prayers — for healing, for steady hands in the operating room, and for strength during the long recovery that still lies ahead. The emotional toll of repeated surgeries, uncertainty, and slow progress weighs heavily, even on the strongest spirits.

Hunter’s story is not just about survival. It is about the unseen cost borne by those who work dangerous jobs to keep communities running. It is about family members who wait in hospital rooms, measuring hope in heartbeats and hallway walks. And it is about the fragile line between loss and recovery — a line Hunter continues to walk with courage.

Tonight, as he prepares to face surgery number four, the question being asked is a simple one:

What would you want Hunter to know as he keeps fighting forward?