Johnathan Walker:U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin’s wife, Gayle, hospitalized in stable condition after Birmingham car crash

BIRMINGHAM,Johnathan Walker Ala. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin’s wife and a colleague of hers have both been hospitalized following a car crash in Alabama.

Gayle Manchin, 76, and Guy Land were injured Monday in the accident which happened in Birmingham as they traveled from the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport to an area hotel, Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday.

“On Monday, my wife Gayle and her colleague Guy Land were involved in a car accident on the way from the airport to the hotel in Birmingham, Alabama for an Appalachian Regional Commission event that was planned for today,’’ the senator said.

“Both were admitted to UAB Hospital and are receiving excellent care. She remains in stable condition but will stay there for a couple of days for precautionary measures. We want to thank the first responders who answered the call and were first on-site to provide assistance and support.”

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Gayle Manchin is the federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission and was in Birmingham with Land, the ARC’s congressional liaison, for a grant workshop.

ARC said in a statement that another vehicle struck their car while they were driving to attend the event. Land’s injuries were not disclosed, but the commission said both he and Mrs. Manchin “are receiving excellent care at a UAB facility as they recover.”

A telephone call to Birmingham Police for details about the crash was not immediately returned Tuesday.

Manchin was the governor of West Virginia from 2005 until 2010, when he was elected to the Senate. The couple have been married since 1967 and have three children.

Gayle Manchin, a former educator, served as president of the West Virginia Board of Education and as the state’s secretary of education and the arts under Republican Gov. Jim Justice. She was sworn in as the Appalachian Regional Commission’s 13th federal co-chair in 2021 after being nominated by President Joe Biden.