01:19 PM CDT on Thursday, May 25, 2006

Officer of the Coroner, Madison County, Illinois

Investigators are looking into the death of a barge worker pulled from the Mississippi River Thursday morning.

The man has been identified as C.F. Rodgers, 53, of Madison, Illinois.

Coroner investigators report that Rodgers was a laborer working on a moored barge at the Beelman River Terminal.

Rodgers was found floating in the river by co-workers less than ten minutes after he was last seen alive.

The co-workers pulled Rodgers from the water and started cardio pulmonary resuscitation. He was transported to Gateway Regional Medical Center by ambulance and was pronounced dead in the emergency room.

Investigators believe Rodgers may have been attempting to tie down the barge when he slipped or fell into the river.

 It has not been determined whether Rodgers, who was wearing a safety-vest, drowned or suffered a fatal heart attack.

Rodgers had been working at the Beelman River Terminal since December 2005.