Human remains found in Rouge River in Michigan by kayaker, police investigating

    WAYNE, Michigan (WXYZ) -- Human remains were found in the Lower Rouge River area near Pershing Street in Wayne, the city’s police department said.

Police say the discovery was made after someone kayaking reported finding what looked like decomposed human remains tangled along the embankment on Wednesday around 5:15 p.m.

Police responded to the river and confirmed what the person saw was the upper torso of a human. A recovery effort began and on Thursday morning, additional remains including the lower half of the body were pulled by the Michigan State Police Marine Service Team.

The body was taken to the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office to be investigated. An identity of the person has not yet been determined but investigators believe it could be the body of an adult female.

Residents in the tight-knit neighborhood near John R Street and Pershing Street are feeling uneasy, as the Rouge River flows right through their backyards.

“To think that like this happened that close to us and with this many people in the neighborhood, the kids and all that, is kind of weird and scary," Corey Ingram, who lives in the area, said.

What neighbors are also disturbed by is that this specific area of the river is frequented by children who play in the water.

They just want to know how this happened, so they can move on.

"It is quite a shock," neighbor Rodney Severance said.

Police are continuing to investigate. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Lt. Springer at 734-721-1414, ext. 1503, or by email at [email protected] and say it’s related to the human remains case.