The man found dead in Whitewater Creek on Tuesday night has been identified as 63-year-old Michael Hughes of Marietta, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s office.

A woman walking her dog spotted Hughes’ body lying face-down in the 4000 block of Whitewater Creek Road, Channel 2 Action News reported. The creek feeds into the Chattahoochee River.

Police and fire crews were called in just before 7:30 p.m., but it took them hours to recover the body as the area was tough for emergency responders to reach.

Multiple agencies responded to Whitewater Creek in northwest Atlanta after a woman walking her dog discovered a decomposing body. (Credit: Channel 2 Action News)
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Homicide investigators were also asked to respond for further investigation, Atlanta police spokeswoman Officer Lisa Bender told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

An investigator with the Medical Examiner’s office said Thursday they are still trying to determine how the man died. It is not known how he ended up in the water.

— Staff writer Chelsea Prince contributed to this article.