People who saw a body being pulled from a pond in Queen's Gardens today have spoken of their shock.
Crowds of shoppers, workers and students, gathered the length of the police cordon around the city centre spot.
Humberside Police said the body of a man was found by a member of the public at 1.23pm.
They have now confirmed they are not treating the death as suspicious.
Sammie Vickerman, 17, a student at Hull College, saw the body being removed by two police officers.
She said: "We normally come through here on our lunch break. We were walking through and a policeman told us to go on the road.
"Then a woman told us a body had been found so we looked. It was lying in the weeds and they dragged it out.
"It was horrible to see and the last thing we expected."
Her friend Elisha Vass, 17, said: "It was gruesome. We walk past here every day. It is awful to think of that happening here."
Sam Vine, 19, also a Hull College student, said: "It is scary, you never expect to see stuff like this happening, especially not here."
It is thought more than one person raised the alarm with police and the body was taken away at 2.20pm.
A spokesman for Humberside Police said: "A man's body was recovered from the water.
"The man has not been formally identified but, following initial enquiries, the death is not thought to be suspicious."
Hull City Council posted on Twitter: "Queens Gardens is currently closed due to a police incident. Apologies for any inconvenience."
Updated: 4.55pm
