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SILVER LAKE - James A. Haney probably never thought that the pine tree he planted as a child would one day save his life.
Haney, 59, a Silver Lake native who is now a doctor in Idaho Falls, Idaho, is listed in serious condition today in Fort Wayne after crashing his small plane in Silver Lake Saturday. His wife, Marilyn, 58, who is also originally from Silver Lake, is in fair condition.
The crash occurred at 1:18 p.m. in the yard of a home at 305 N. Jefferson.
Neighbors said officials from the Federal Aviation Administration noted that the momentum of the plane was slowed by a pine tree across the street from where the plane crashed. The tree is in the yard of the house where Dr. Haney grew up, at 308 N. Jefferson, and he reportedly planted the tree when he was a child.
Haney's antique Piper PA-16 circled Silver Lake three times, according to witnesses. On the third circle, however, something went wrong.
Ken and Jean Fritchman were working on their garage roof across the street at the time of the crash.
"It came in so low I thought it was going to hit us," Ken said Sunday. "I told Jean, 'That plane's going down.' "
Fritchman and his son, Chad Haselby, 15, ran to the crash; Chad and other neighbors, including Alvin Cook, held up the plane while Fritchman and others pulled the Haneys out.
Afraid that the plane would catch on fire, Fritchman turned off the engine and threw out the keys.
Marilyn Haney was taken out first since she was on top. James Haney was more difficult to get out, Fritchman said, since his legs were trapped under the dashboard.
"I had to get ahold of him and really pull to get him out," Fritchman said.
Evelyn Jagger of Silver Lake, who is Marilyn Haney's sister, said today that the Haneys are in Fort Wayne Parkview Hospital. Marilyn Haney is listed in fair condition with a spinal fracture, and James Haney is in serious condition with head injuries.
The Haneys fly from Idaho to Kosciusko County at least once each year, Jagger said, and circle Silver Lake two or three times to let the Jaggers know they have arrived. The Jaggers then drive to the Warsaw Airport to meet them.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, but one theory is that the plane ran out of fuel, a possibility Jagger disagrees with.
Marilyn Haney told her they had filled up in Idaho before they left, Jagger said, and when they were circling Silver Lake they should have had an hour's worth of fuel left.
"He was just so particular about his planes" that he would not have spent time circling Silver Lake if he had been low on fuel, Jagger said.
The Fritchmans said the plane was quiet on the third circle before it crashed. "The engine just quit and it glided in. It didn't spit or sputter or anything," they said.
Fritchman also said he smelled fuel when he arrived at the crash site, which is why he worried about fire.
Jagger said the Haneys had planned to stay with them for a week.
The Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department, the Silver Lake Fire Department and the Indiana State Police investigated the crash. The FAA is still investigating the cause of the crash.
