Last Updated:March 26. 2008 10:25PM
Published: March 27. 2008 3:30AM

Authorities said it appears a Franklin County man drowned Tuesday evening after he accidentally fell into a creek where he was fishing.

Franklin County Sheriff Larry Plott said the body of 62-year-old Johnny Ward, 100 Pearson Road, Red Bay, was recovered from the waters of Bear Creek Canal just after midnight Wed-nesday. The canal crosses Alabama 11, just north of Red Bay.

"It appears to have been a very tragic accident," the sheriff said. "We have not found anything out of the ordinary to indicate it was anything but an accident."

Ward's sister, Sue Whisenante, of Florence, said she was notified Wednesday morning of her brother's death.

"It wasn't a phone call I was expecting. It was a shock to us," Whisenante said.

She said her brother loved to fish and went to the creek just about every day.

Plott said someone would take Ward to the creek and then come and pick him up. He said a family member went to pick up Ward around 10 p.m. and discovered Ward was not on the bank.

Whisenante said her daughter, Melanie Pearson, was the family member who had gone to pick up Ward.

"She said he wasn't there when she went to pick up him, and she found his fishing pole lying on the bank and his hat in the creek," Whisenante said. "(His daughter) said she knew something was wrong."

Authorities searched for the body, locating it about 20 yards from the bank where he had been fishing.

Franklin County Deputy Coroner Sherry Crowder pronounced Ward dead at the scene around midnight.

Plott said that at most places in the creek, the water is shallow, but there are some places were there are "deep holes."

Whisenante said she talked to her brother a couple of weeks ago about one of his fishing trips.

"He said he had caught a fish that weighed 12 pounds," she said. "I told him to be careful when he was out there fishing."

Whisenante said her brother's passions were fishing and gardening.

"He loved to fish more than anything, and he loved raising vegetables in his garden. He kept the family supplied with fish and vegetables," she said. "He already had some vegetables planted this year."

Whisenante said her brother was a good man, who is going to be greatly missed by his family.

"It's very unfortunate, and our thoughts and prayers are with the family," Plott said.

Tom Smith can be reached at 740-5757 or tom.smith@timesdaily.com.