TOLONO, Ill., (WCIA) — Many people in Central Illinois are remembering the day Air Force One was “stuck in the mud” at Willard Airport in Savoy.

It happened 25 years ago. President Bill Clinton was coming to the Champaign area to speak at U of I.

On Saturday, former first responders and airport staff members gathered at Monical’s Pizza in Tolono to share their stories of the day.

John Smith was the airport Fire Marshal at the time. He said he learned more at the gathering than he wouldn’t have otherwise known.

“One mystery was solved. We didn’t know where some material metal panels came from that were used to roll the aircraft onto the concrete again,” Smith said. “Filling in the little details that you may not have known or may have forgotten.”

He said on the day the plane was stuck, he was assisting Secret Service. Others were called in to help with security, and also pull the plane out of the mud.