“IT destroys you.”

Those are the words of homeless man Scott Cavanagh, talking about finding the lifeless body of a fellow rough sleeper.

He is currently sleeping in an archway opposite Black Rock, near Brighton Marina, and found the man’s body on Sunday morning.

Scott, 33, said he could not sleep that night knowing he found the body above his “home”.

“I went for a walk and found the body,” he said.

“Me and a friend tried to revive him. I gave him CPR but he was dead.

“I tried my hardest – it has broken my heart.”

The man, believed to be in his early thirties, was unresponsive when emergency services arrived at 8.50am. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are not treating the death as suspicious and the body is with the coroner’s officer.

For Scott, living on the streets day in day out is a struggle. He said the mental damage sustained by finding someone dead, combined with the despair of sleeping in the cold, is soul-destroying.

He said: “I feel awful, I can’t stop thinking about it.

“Mentally, I don’t know whether I’m coming or going. It destroys you.”

Scott was close to tears while describing the traumatising experience of Sunday morning to The Argus.

He said the dead man had been battling with mental problems and drug abuse but was trying to get his life back on track.

The man’s brother, who is also homeless according to Scott, was at the scene after he died but has not returned since, leaving Scott worried for his welfare.

Originally from Manchester, Scott moved to Brighton six years ago after being disowned by his family for being gay.

He lived at Phase One, a Brighton Housing Trust hostel in Oriental Place, until two weeks ago.

He battled heroin and alcohol addiction but says he has been clean for the past six months.

Scott has been living in the archway for the past two weeks, and feels he has hit rock bottom.

“Living in the cold is the worst part about it,” he said.

“And not knowing where your next meal is coming from. I haven’t eaten for three days.

“I’ve had a few people bringing me tea, coffee and sandwiches, which is really kind, but I hate taking things from them.”

Government figures revealed that Brighton and Hove had the biggest increase in homelessness figures in the country this year and Scott is one of 144 rough sleepers in the city.

After Sunday’s death, Scott can only see the problem getting worse as the weather gets colder.

He said: “The cold is definitely a factor in homeless people dying. It’s horrible.”

Another issue of homelessness is the torrent of abuse many rough sleepers are subjected to.

Scott said he has been kicked and spat on during his short stint in the Madeira Drive archway, and described the experience as “extremely degrading”.

He added: “I don’t know if people walking by are going to attack me. It’s scary.”

His recent experiences living on the seafront have left him stuck, feeling as though there is no light at the end of the tunnel as he watches others carry on with their lives.

“Watching the world go by while you have nothing to do is awful,” Scott said.

“I think that is why a lot of homeless people get involved in crime.”

Kemp Town resident Alex Moore witnessed the dead man’s body being taken away by the coroner’s officer on Sunday morning.

She was walking her dog when she noticed the commotion, and contacted The Argus after speaking to Scott at 10.30am.

Alex took Scott a coffee and comforted him after the ordeal, saying he seemed “totally shocked” by what had happened.

She added: “I really felt for him.”

Alex had to sleep in her van for a brief spell when she moved back to Brighton from Cumbria in February and said there is “nothing worse” than not having your own address.

A Sussex Police spokesman said: “Police were advised by ambulance colleagues that they were attending to an unresponsive man in Madeira Drive, Brighton at 8.50am on Sunday.

“Sadly, the man, believed to be in his thirties, was pronounced dead at the scene.

“The matter is not being treated as suspicious and has been passed to the coroner’s officer.”