A Jones County man who died after flipping his riding lawn mower into a pond Saturday had suffered a heart attack, according to the coroner’s office.

David McNeal was mowing on a steep bank when it turned over went into a pond, said Sgt. Bobby Gay of the Jones County Sheriff’s Department.

The accident happened at about 2 p.m.

Deputy Coroner Bill Wright said it was determined the heart attack was the cause of death and likely is what caused the accident. McNeal, 50, was pronounced dead at Coliseum Medical Center in Macon.

Wright said McNeal was a retired Jones County firefighter and station chief.