Maria Branias Morera died in her sleep in the morning at the age of 118, EFE reports. Maria was recognized as the first in the list of long-livers last year. Now the oldest person in the world is 116-year-old Japanese Tomiko Itooka.
Earlier, the family published the woman’s last message: “The time is near. Don’t cry, I don’t like tears. And most importantly, do not suffer because of me. Wherever I go, I will be happy.”
Last year, her daughter explained her mother’s longevity with good genes, DW writes. According to her, Branias has never been hospitalized in her life.
The record for longevity continues to be held by the Frenchwoman Jeanne Kalman, who died in 1997 at the age of 123. She is followed on the list of prominent, but also deceased, long-livers by Japanese Kane Tanaka, who lived 119 years, as well as 119-year-old Sarah Noss from the United States and 118-year-old Frenchwoman Lucille Randon.