Iron River Man Dies After Falling Through Ice

An elderly Iron River man who was reported missing Tuesday night has been found dead. The Iron County Sheriff Office says family members of 87-year old Albert Melchiori reported that they had not had contact with him since Monday evening when he had ventured out ice fishing on Chicagon Lake. Melchiori’s truck was found parked at a camp along the shoreline where he accessed his ice shack by ORV. Melchiori and the ORV were not at his ice shack. A search began late Tuesday evening and resumed Wednesday morning with assistance from a United States Coast Guard helicopter. After a short flight over the lake the chopper spotted Melchiori’s ORV which had fallen through the ice along the northwest shoreline of the lake about a quarter mile from his truck. A short time later the Coast Guard located Melchiori’s body on the ice about 150 yards from his ORV. Officials believe Melchiori became disoriented on the ice due to heavy fog and drove his ORV onto unsafe ice along the shoreline.