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No serious injuries in plane crash
Originally published 10:56 a.m., July 3, 2009
Updated 03:15 p.m., July 3, 2009
A Fargo pilot and two passengers escaped serious injury when a float plane overturned on Lake Lizzie Friday morning.
The accident occurred around 10:30 a.m. as Richard Springer, 52, was attempting to land a plane carrying his wife, Terryl, and a Burnsville girl. Springer told authorities with the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office he forgot to retract the plane’s landing gear, causing the aircraft to overturn shortly after it hit the water.
Brian Berg and James Fyhrie, neighbors on the lake’s west side, witnessed the accident. Their families, gathered for swimming and a barbecue Friday, often stop to watch Springer fly. This time the landing was different.
“All of a sudden (the plane) was skidding abruptly and the end started tipping like it was nosediving,” Berg said.
After the plane flipped, Berg and Fyhrie got on jet skis and were among the first to arrive at the plane, which was about 300 yards from shore. The Springers and the girl clung to the plane’s floats, the only part of the aircraft still above water. Nearby fishermen made it to the scene first and were able to help the stranded group into their boat.
Jon Ingvalson, another lake property owner, witnessed the accident as he was scrubbing his dock.
“I saw him flip and a big splash and I thought it was a boat that turned too fast,” he said.
Ingvalson shouted to his wife, who called 911, and Ingvalson and a neighbor took his pontoon out to the scene. The fishermen were already assisting the group, Ingvalson said.
Members of the Otter Tail County Water Patrol were out in boats near the submerged aircraft Friday afternoon. A conservation officer with the Department of Natural Resources was also at the scene. The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the incident, as it does all plane crashes, said Dep. Steve Brandner. No fuel or oil had leaked from the plane as of Friday afternoon.
Brandner did not know when the aircraft would be removed from the lake.
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The Daily Journal is happy to host community conversations about news and life in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area. As hosts, we expect guests will show respect for each other. That means we don't threaten or defame each other, and we keep conversations free of personal attacks. Those who persist with racist, defamatory or abusive postings risk losing the privilege to post. To post a comment you will need to register. Or, if you're already registered but have not included your true, verifiable identity with your registration, you will need to update your account to include your identity. Effective Dec. 1, 2009, all posts appear with the commenter's true identity, which must be verified by site staff. Those who registered prior to Dec. 1, 2009, should be aware that once you update your information with your true identity, all prior posts under your user name will also indicate your true identity. If you do not wish to link yourself to prior comments, you should register again with a different user name.Posted by JohnHolmes (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 1:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Duh
Posted by Newshound (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 3:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Well, as he would be the first to tell you, he made a dumb but common mistake. You gotta have your head in it at all times. These usually aren't fatal but they can scare hell out of you and your best pals will NEVER let you forget it!
No.......I haven't.
Posted by Flashbang (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 2:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Newshound; what's the 'common mistake' you write about?
Posted by Norse (anonymous) on July 10, 2009 at 10:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
"forgot to retract the plane’s landing gear"
Comprehension 101 (Flashbang)?
Posted by Newshound (anonymous) on July 10, 2009 at 11:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Flashbang: I am assuming he was equipped with what are commonly called "wheel floats" - a combination of floats and regular landing gear. If you take off from a runway using the wheels ,intending to land on water on the floats, but forget to retract the wheels, you will flip on your head faster than you can say "oh sh--"!
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