Indiana Man Dies Trying to Rescue Illinois Boy From Creek

Authorities say an Indiana man died after he was swept away while trying to help rescue a boy from a rain-swollen creek in rural eastern Illinois.

The Edgar County coroner says 31-year-old Jeremy Layton of West Terre Haute, Indiana, was pronounced dead after his body was found Monday evening. He had been caught in the churning water of Sugar Creek near the community of Vermilion.

Coroner Pete Templeton tells the (Terre Haute) Tribune-Star that Layton and two other adults were with four children in the creek when a boy lost his footing on a concrete slab.

Layton and another man tried to rescue the boy, who held onto debris a short distance downstream and was pulled out. Templeton says Layton was pulled under by the strong current.