One man dead, another hospitalized after falling through ice while fishing

Posted on February 3, 2025
Comlara Park is located at 3001 Recreation Area Drive in Hudson. (Facebook/McLean County Parks and Recreation)

By WMBD TV

HUDSON – One person is dead and another was treated at a Bloomington hospital after falling through ice while fishing at Lake Evergreen in Comlara Park.

Dead was Jared M. Ward, 49, of Metamora, who died from drowning due to cold exposure, said McLean County Coroner Kathleen Yoder. He was pronounced dead at 8:18 p.m. Sunday at OSF St. Joseph’s Medical Center.

Deputies with the McLean County Sheriff’s Office were called to the park’s east boat launch at about 4:30 p.m. on a report of two men who had fallen through the ice. Several departments including Hudson Fire Department, El Paso Fire Department, Towanda Fire Department and Normal Fire Department all responded to the scene and were able to get them out.

Ward was taken to Saint Joseph, while the other man, who has not been identified, was taken to Carle BroMenn Medical Center.

This incident remains under investigation by the McLean County Coroner’s Office and McLean County Sheriff’s Office.

WMBD TV can be reached at [email protected].

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