Death on Nelson street in Auckland's CBD

A person has died on the footpath in central Auckland this afternoon.

A witness told the Herald a body covered in a white sheet is lying outside the Aura apartment building at the corner of Cook and Nelson Streets.

"A lot of people are looking at the body from outside their apartment" he said.

The witness said the person appears to be a male.

"The police officers seem to be just guarding the body, but they're not interviewing anyone," he said.

There are five police officers and three ambulance staff at the scene.

Police confirmed emergency services were alerted to reports of an unresponsive person on the pavement.

Medical attention was provided to the person but they died at the scene.

A St John spokeswoman confirmed they were called to Nelson St at 2.06pm and three ambulances were sent. The spokeswoman said there was no other information available as the incident had been referred to police.

The death will be referred to the Coroner.