A MAN'S badly-decomposed body has been plucked from the River Severn near Worcester.

A passer-by made the grisly discovery yesterday lunchtime as they walked along the footpath near the Wheatsheaf pub on Henwick Road.

Shocked neighbours spoke of their horror as the body was plucked from the water, just yards from their back doors.

One woman, whose house overlooks the spot, said police arrived on the scene at around 1.45pm.

"I looked out and saw a lot of police down by the river and realised it must have been something quite serious," said the woman, who did not want to be named.

"It's quite shocking when you see something like this close to your house."

Firefighters from Worcester's Green Watch launched their inflatable rescue craft upstream from the Wheatsheaf at around 2pm.

It is thought they helped police pluck the corpse from the murky water, but would not comment further on the find.

A lone policeman guarded the body, covered in tarpaulin, as CID officers and a police photographer stood nearby.

Stunned walkers were turned away from the footpath as the lunchtime horror unfolded.

Police today were still struggling to identify the corpse, which is thought to have been in the water for some time.

PC Howard Latham, of Worcester police, said the man's body had been taken to the mortuary at Worcester Royal Infirmary.

Identification is expected to take several days, but PC Latham would not confirm whether or not the force was treating the incident as suspicious.

"A post-mortem will be carried out as soon as possible," he said.

"The normal method of identification is usually checking dental records or DNA.

"But we're keeping an open mind at this time and are continuing to carry our inquiries."