U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany safe after emergency plane landing in Lake Wausau

WAUSAU – U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor, was released from Aspirus Wausau Hospital with minor injuries after a plane transporting him to northern Wisconsin made an emergency landing in Lake Wausau late Saturday night, Sept. 12.
“Tom suffered a laceration above his right eye that required stitches and was released from the hospital last night,” the Tiffany campaign said in a Sept. 13 statement. “The pilot was also released. Tom and his family thank God that neither suffered more serious injuries and are grateful for the exceptional care he received at Aspirus Wausau Hospital.”
The plane went down at about 8:49 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12, according to Marathon County Emergency Dispatch. The Wausau Fire Department, along with the Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, Wausau Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Wisconsin State Patrol and SAFER Fire Department responded to the incident.
Preliminary information indicates the aircraft experienced a mechanical issue while approaching the airport, emergency officials said. The pilot then made an emergency landing on Lake Wausau. Tiffany and the pilot were the only two people on board the Beechcraft K35.
“After landing, we called 911,” Tiffany said in a statement Sept. 12. “As the plane began to submerge, we exited the aircraft and swam to a shallow area, where we waited until emergency responders reached us by boat.”

The Wausau Fire Department deployed the department’s airboat and rapid deployment craft after arriving near the scene. Crews quickly located two occupants in the water after they had exited the aircraft. Both were brought aboard the airboat and taken safely to shore, where paramedics provided medical care.
Both patients were taken to Aspirus Wausau Hospital for further evaluation and treatment.
“I want to express my deepest gratitude to the pilot, the Wausau Fire Department and all of the first responders who came to our aid so quickly,” Tiffany said in a statement Sept. 12. “They got us safely off the water and transported us to Aspirus Wausau Hospital, where we received excellent care. Thankfully, both the pilot and I sustained only minor injuries.”
The investigation into the loss of power will be handled by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.