A sudden death investigation led to a massive response by Windsor police, fire and emergency personnel.

Police officers and EMS arrived at a home in the 700 block of Dougall Avenue before 8:00 a.m. Friday and found a person dead on the front porch of the home.

Police noted a white powdery substance near the body.

As a precaution, police treated the scene as potentially hazardous and called in the hazmat team from the Windsor Fire department.

“Step one is safety” says Windsor police Sgt. Steve Betteridge. “Step two is an analysis to determine what this unknown substance is and move forward to determine the cause of death.”

Neighbours in the area were taken aback by the volume of emergency vehicles and personnel. Resident Ted Dalpe says it’s starting to become a regular occurrence.

“It’s getting worse in this neighbourhood. I've seen more and more police” admits Dalpe.

Police say the homeowner knew the male victim, who had been visiting, and discovered the body on the porch.

Betteridge says there was never any threat to public safety, and there is no indication of foul play.

Dougall Avenue was closed from Wyandotte to Elliott Street for nearly 10 hours for the investigation led by the major crimes branch.