TOWN OF DECATUR — A 69-year-old Madison man is dead following a kayak accident in the Sugar River on Tuesday.

According to Green County Sheriff Cody Kanable, at 3:29 p.m. on June 9, the Sheriff’s Office Communication Center received a 911 call reporting a person was unresponsive and not breathing on the bank of the Sugar River in the Town of Decatur.

“The Sheriff’s Office Communication Center utilized 911 GPS technology to locate the emergency in a remote portion of the Sugar River approximately 1.8 miles northwest of the City of Brodhead,” Kanable said.

Deputies immediately responded to the area along with Brodhead EMS, Brodhead Fire Department, Brodhead Police Department and WI Department of Natural Resources Conservation Warden.

“This area is below a dam that is accessed from a park in the N3700 block of Park Road,” Kanable said. At the time of the incident waterflow below the dam was swift due to recent rains, he added.

Preliminary investigation determined that the man from Madison, who is not yet identified, entered the Sugar River below the dam in a kayak.

“The male was with a group of people when he went ahead of the group down river. The male subject became entangled in trees and capsized going under water,” Kanable said. “The group was able to get the male subject to shore where he was unresponsive. Citizens and first responders attempted life saving measures on scene.”

The male victim was pronounced dead at the scene by the Green County Coroner’s Office. He was not wearing a personal flotation device at the time of the incident.

The incident remains under investigation by the Green County Sheriff’s Office and WI Department of Natural Resources.