A HORRIFIED security guard raised the alarm when he saw a semi-naked body floating in the canal as he made his way home from work.

Peter Kozlowski made the gruesome discovery as he used a torch to find his way along the bank near to Shorrock Lane, Blackburn, at around 6am today.

The Group 4 security man was returning home after his night shift guarding the M65 extension when he saw the body, close to the canal bridge.

It is believed the body is that of a 69-year-old woman from Beaumaris Avenue, Blackburn.

It is thought she left her home at around 5.30am today and had only been in the water for a short time when she was found.

Police do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances.

Peter, of Hollin Bridge Street, said: "It gave me the shock of my life.

"It was pitch black but I caught the reflection of something in the water.

"I thought it could have been a dummy but I didn't want to take any chances. I stood and looked at it for a while before I decided that it was a body.

"I ran to the newsagents and told the woman behind the counter to ring the police.

"By the time I had got back to the canal the police were there. It has really shaken me up. I'm shaking like a leaf."

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