McDonough County Sheriff’s Office Responds to Drowning in Prairie City, Illinois.

McDonough County Sheriff’s Office Responds to Drowning in Prairie City, Illinois.
Macomb, IL –A three-year-old juvenile drowned Friday afternoon in a neighbor's koi pond. McDonough
County Deputies along with the Bushnell-Prairie City Fire Department and Lifeguard Ambulance
responded to an address on North Cadwalader Street for an unresponsive juvenile male.
The child was playing outside with his siblings and neighbor children when he went missing. A neighbor
who lives next door to the family's home was working in the yard when he discovered the child face-
down in his koi pond. The neighbor pulled the child out and immediately began CPR. The neighbor
called 911 while working to save the child, and at the same time, a 911 call came in from the child’s
mother to report her child was missing. 
Emergency responders arrived within minutes. The male juvenile was pronounced deceased at 5:24
p.m. Friday, March 20, 2026, at McDonough District Hospital, according to McDonough County Coroner
Eric Jameson.
The McDonough County Sheriff's Office and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services are
investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident. 
I would like to thank Bushnell-Prairie City Fire Department, Lifeguard Ambulance, and McDonough
District Hospital for their efforts. I’d also like to commend the neighbor who acted quickly and started
CPR right away.