Zan Henson Survives Airplane Crash
Local eco-law crusader reported to be in stable condition.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Carmel Valley attorney Alexander “Zan” Henson crashed a single-engine plane into the Monterey Pines Golf Course northwest of the Monterey Peninsula Airport around 6pm on Tuesday night, Nov. 25.
Henson was taken to the Community Hospital of Monterey Peninsula. His passenger, Santa Cruz attorney Jim Rummins, was airlifted to a hospital in San Jose. The two men, both in their 60s, reportedly sustained injuries that are not life threatening.
Henson’s wife, Holly Henson, told The Monterey County Herald she expected her husband to be released from the hospital Nov. 26. Rummins reportedly was still being treated for back, head and lung injuries.
The men were approaching the airport on their way home from a vacation in Mexico when Zan Henson crashed into trees on the golf course, according to reports. Police blocked off the western end of Garden Road for several hours, re-routing cars to the road’s eastern entrance off Olmsted Road.
For years, the Weekly has reported on Henson’s battles for “slow-growth” development, a voter-owned desalination plant and other environmental causes. He directed the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District board from 1981-1982 and 1999-2003 and was founding director of the Monterey chapter of Surfrider Foundation.
Henson represented the local nonprofit Helping Our Peninsula’s Environment in the 2007 lawsuit challenging the state’s pheromone battle against the light brown apple moth. He filed suit against the September Ranch proposed subdivision in 1999, successfully arguing that the developer didn’t prove water rights. And he represented proponents of Measure M, which blocked new commercial development at Rancho San Carlos.
Henson is also an outdoor enthusiast, whose hobbies include surfing, hiking—and flying small planes.
UPDATE: NTSB ACCIDENT REPORT http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20081126X30503&key=1
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