A 56-year-old man whose body was found early Thursday is believed to have died when he lost his balance and fell from a rock near the Barge Canal.
Bruce D. Rohacek, of Little Falls, hit his head in the fall and died from the injury, according to Daniel Enea, county coroner. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death, Enea said, and it is being ruled accidental.
City police called in state police to assist in the search for Rohacek, who was last seen leaving his Little Falls residence Wednesday close to 5 p.m., according to Frank Spatto, Herkimer state police investigator.
After locating his vehicle at 11:30 p.m. at the end of River Road, state troopers and city police and fire department personnel began a search of the area, Spatto said. Dark conditions slowed the search, but a K-9 unit located the body at 3:30 a.m. near the canal shoreline not far from the parked vehicle.
Police do not suspect anyone else was with Rohacek, Spatto said. But the investigation was still ongoing Thursday.
