Oldest person in the world dies aged 114

LONDON - The oldest person in the world has passed away at the age of 114.

Eugenie - known as ‘Sweets’ and the last survivor of a family of 13 brothers and sisters - had lived in the geriatric ward of a hospital for the last 30 years.

Her cousin Armelle Blanchard said she could sadly no longer talk but had seemed to be in relatively good health.

“When you talked to her, she would smile. We don’t know if she understood us,” the Sun quoted Blanchard as saying.

She was born on St Barts on February 16 1896 and died at Bruyn Hospital, said hospital director Pierre Nuty.

She lived for much of her life in a convent on the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao before returning home in the 1950s when her only companion was a cat.

France’s Junior Minister for Senior Citizens, Nora Berra, said Blanchard devoted her life to God and to others.

“Eugenie Blanchard, who dedicated herself to help those who are most fragile, was a lovely and generous example of France.”

Eugenie became the world’s oldest person after Kama Chinen from Japan died a week before her 115th birthday, according to the Gerontology Research Group.

Eugenie was recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records. (ANI)