A Wisconsin congressman is giving thanks to God after he and his pilot survived an emergency plane landing in Lake Wausau.
U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor, became emotional Sunday as he recounted the frightening moments before the small aircraft lost power and crashed into the water late Saturday night.
“The pilot said, ‘We are going down,’” Tiffany told reporters at a Wausau firehouse. “’Pull your seat belt tight.’ I gave it a yank and pulled it good and tight. It was probably about 10 seconds later … we hit the water.”
Tiffany said he was returning from the La Crosse County Lincoln Day Dinner when the single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza experienced a loss of power while approaching Wausau Downtown Airport.
‘God Was Looking After Us’
After the plane struck Lake Wausau, Tiffany and pilot Leonard Boltz climbed onto the aircraft and remained there as it began to sink.
The two men then made the decision to swim toward shore, traveling an estimated 100 to 150 feet before reaching water shallow enough to stand in. Boltz called 911 after they escaped the plane, and emergency responders arrived in a fire department airboat shortly after 9 p.m.
Tiffany, 68, expressed gratitude for what he described as God’s providential protection.
“We’re really fortunate that God was looking after us last night,” Tiffany said.
The congressman said the seriousness of the close call was beginning to sink in the following day, though he and Boltz tried to keep their spirits up throughout the ordeal.
“The gravity of this is probably just hitting me at this point,” Tiffany said as he got emotional. “We were making jokes every step of the way last night. Though we knew it was a serious situation, we tried to keep it light through the whole thing.”
Despite the frightening accident, Tiffany said it will not interrupt his campaign for governor.