Survivor recalls plane crash that took friend's life

Dan Steffen, 55, Crosslake, died Sunday morning after his small airplane crashed into Upper Whitefish Lake near Crosslake. His long-time friend Frederick “Rick” Hammer Jr. tells the Brainerd Dispatch, "When we hit the water, it came pouring into the plane and everything hurt like crazy. I grabbed my safety belt and got out. I was trying to get to Dan but I couldn’t get to him. I was helpless. My arms and legs weren’t working.”