TOKYO, Japan—The world’s oldest person, a Japanese woman, died on Wednesday, a few weeks after celebrating her 117th birthday.
Misao Okawa died of heart failure and stopped breathing as her grandson and nursing home workers stood by her side, praising her for achieving a healthy long life, said Tomohiro Okada, an official at her Osaka nursing home.
“She went so peacefully, as if she had just fallen asleep,” Okada said. “We miss her a lot.”
Okawa, born in Osaka on March 5, 1898, was recognized as the world’s oldest person by Guinness World Records in 2013. In context, the Philippines at the time was to declare independence from colonizer Spain in two months’ time.
READ: World’s oldest woman turns 116 in Japan
Okada said Okawa lost her appetite about 10 days ago.
Okawa, the daughter of a kimono maker, said at her birthday celebration that her life seemed rather short.
READ: World’s oldest person celebrates a day before turning 117
Okawa married her husband, Yukio, in 1919, and they had two daughters, a son, four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. She outlived her husband, who died in 1931, by 84 years.
The funeral will be a private affair, according to the nursing home officials. With Dan Paurom, Inquirer.net/RC