A 56-year-old Riverdale man died Monday after he apparently collapsed of possible heart failure and fell into the Kankakee River.
Robert L. DeMarche, of the 14000 block of Wallace Avenue in Riverdale, collapsed and fell into the Kankakee River near the South Island Dam just before noon Monday, said Wilmington police Lt. Wally Evans.
Preliminary findings of an autopsy performed Tuesday showed that DeMarche suffered from heart disease, according to the Will County coroner’s office.
DeMarche had gone to the area to fish, and witnesses said they saw him walking there with fishing gear about 10 minutes before the accident, Evans said.
Fishermen were alerted to the accident when someone saw DeMarche’s body in the river and began yelling, Evans said. He appeared to be unconscious at the time, Evans added.
DeMarche’s body was pushed out from the undertow and his body was recovered at the scene by police.