Meet the World’s New Oldest Living Person

Olivia B. Waxman

Jeralean Talley and godson Tyler Kinloch pictured with one of the seven catfish she caught at the Spring Valley Trout Farm in Dexter, Mich., on June 16, 2012. Courtesy of Michael Kinloch

Here's what 115-year-old Jeralean Talley of Michigan had to say about the news

The last two known people on Earth born in 1898 have passed away just five days apart, according to the Gerontology Research Group.

Following the death of 117-year-old Japanese woman Misao Okawa last Wednesday, Gertrude Weaver of Camden, Ark., became the world’s new oldest living person at 116 years old. But she passed away Monday morning at the Silver Oaks Health and Rehabilitation Center after complications due to pneumonia, the Associated Press confirmed.

“The record for the shortest reign is four days, and that was Emma Tillman in 2007 at 114 years old,” said Robert Young, director of the supercentenarians division of the Los Angeles-based Gerontology Research Group. “The average title holder keeps the title maybe for about a year. On top of that, we’ve never had two people over 116 years old die in one week before. So now you can close the book on 1898.”

That makes Jeralean Talley of Inkster, Mich., the new oldest living person at 115 years old. There could still be people who are older than Talley, but their claims have not been verified by the organization, which usually requires documentation such as original proof of birth, name change and recent identification.

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TIME, April 8, 2015

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