From Newsweek · · 1m 20s
Plane loses power, lands in a Wisconsin lake
Tom Tiffany and his pilot swam clear of a sinking plane after a night landing on Lake Wausau.
In brief
Tom Tiffany and his pilot swam clear of a sinking plane after a night landing on Lake Wausau. A powerless small plane put down on Lake Wausau at night and both men got out alive with only minor injuries. Originally reported by Newsweek.
A candidate, a small plane
Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany, running for Wisconsin governor, was flying home Saturday night from the La Crosse County Lincoln Day Dinner.
Power gone on approach
The aircraft lost power as it neared Wausau Downtown Airport. With no engine, the pilot took the only option left and set it down on Lake Wausau.
Then it started sinking
They called 911 from the floating plane. As water took the cabin, both men climbed out and swam toward shallow ground.
“As the plane began to submerge, we exited the aircraft and swam to a shallow area”
Waiting in the water
They stayed in the shallows in the dark until a boat reached them. The Marathon County Sheriff's Office logged the plane going in around 9 p.m.
Pulled out by boat
The Wausau Fire Department and other responders got the pair out of the water and took them to Aspirus Wausau Hospital. Both had minor injuries only.
“Thankfully, both the pilot and I sustained only minor injuries”
Grateful from a hospital bed
Tiffany thanked the pilot and the crews, and said his wife Chris was beside him at the hospital.
“An experience like this reminds you just how precious life is.”
What it means
A powerless small plane put down on Lake Wausau at night and both men got out alive with only minor injuries.
