Tom Tiffany emergency plane landing in Lake Wausau; recovery efforts
Tom Tiffany emergency plane landing in Lake Wausau; recovery efforts
Republican candidate for governor, Tom Tiffany, is safe after an emergency landing in Lake Wausau. Crews plan to recover the submerged plane Monday morning as the FAA investigates the crash.
WAUSAU, Wis. - Republican candidate for governor, Tom Tiffany, is safe after his plane made an emergency landing in Lake Wausau – in the central part of the state – Saturday night.
First responders rescued Tiffany and the pilot from the water.
Both Tiffany and the pilot needed stitches but are going to be okay. Right now the plane is still in the lake. A towing company is now preparing to recover it Monday morning.
Just before 7 a.m. Monday, Sept. 14, is when a local towing company will begin efforts to get the plane out of Lake Wausau.
Tom Tiffany speaks about emergency landing in Lake Wausau
Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor Tom Tiffany spoke to the media about the emergency landing he and a pilot had to make in Lake Wausau on Saturday night, Sept. 12.
Emergency landing
The backstory:
U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany said he was flying back from La Crosse Saturday night – when the small plane he was riding in lost power on final approach to the Wausau Airport. He said the pilot told him to tighten his seatbelt and about 10 seconds later, they hit the water. Tiffany said his head hit the dash.
The Marathon County Sheriff's Office said deputies got the 911 call just before 9 p.m. Saturday. The two men were able to get off of the plane – and waited on top of it for help. But the aircraft started sinking, so they swam to a nearby sandbar.
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About 15 minutes later, Wausau Fire crews reached them by boat. Both men were taken to the hospital with minor injuries and released. Tiffany said the gravity of what happened is still sinking in.
"As we went to our final approach, the plane lost power. And Len said to me, ‘We are going down. Pull your seatbelt tight. That's exactly what I did and It was probably about 10 seconds later, not sure the exact timing, but probably about 10 seconds later, we hit the water," Tiffany said.
Tom Tiffany emergency plane landing; recovery efforts and FAA probe
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany's small plane lost power and made an emergency water landing in Lake Wausau. A local towing company, Jerry's Towing, will lead the recovery effort Monday morning.
A local towing company, Jerry's Towing, is expected to start removing it at 7 a.m. Monday, working with the DNR and Marathon County Sheriff's Office.
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The plan is to use specialized inflatable lifting bags to get the plane floating again and pull it to shore. Crews expect that work to take several hours.. . The FAA is investigating the cause of the emergency landing.
Emergency water landing: Tom Tiffany's plane loses power after campaign event
Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor Tom Tiffany suffered minor injuries after the small plane he was traveling in made an emergency water landing in Lake Wausau.
Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6’s Stephanie Quirk and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing.
The Source: Information in this story was gathered from first responders, Tom Tiffany, Marathon County Sheriff's Office, Wausau Fire crews, Jerry's Towing, Department of Natural Resources and Federal Aviation Administration.