Man, 80, survives crash landing

WARDEN — An 80-year old College Place man survived when he had to crash-land a private plane he was flying from Tonasket to Walla Walla near here at about 10 p.m. on May 4.

Warden Police Chief Rick Martin reported that a small private aircraft crash landed into a waste water pond near Washington Potato. No one was hurt.

The pilot, and only occupant of the plane, was identified as Larry Stevenson, 80, of College Place. He reportedly flew from the Walla Walla Municipal Airport to Tonasket successfully but did not refuel prior to his return.

After running low on fuel, Stevenson tried to land at the Warden airstrip, but he reportedly approached too fast. The Warden Police Department and Grant County Fire District 4 responded to the 911 call made by an employee from Washington Potato.

The FAA was notified and is investigating the incident, Martin said.