Woman's Death Unnoticed for 18 Months

[Guy89]

SANDY RUN, S.C. (April 1) - Mary Sue Merchant died of natural causes in a tightly locked house on 25 acres in this small community, with only a dog for company. Now her small town is reflecting on why no one noticed for 18 months.
Nobody knew the reclusive widow was gone — not even when the house was sold for back taxes while her decomposing body lay inside. Sometime later, the lonely dog died of thirst in the same room.

Being dead for a year and a half before anyone notices... Jeez, can you imagine?

http://news.aol.com/article/womans-death-unnoticed-for-18-months/408007?icid=webmail|wbml-aol|dl1|link4|http%3A%2F%2Fnews.aol.com%2Farticle%2Fwomans-death-unnoticed-for-18-months%2F408007

 

[landers]

Is it weird that I feel worse for the woman's dog than for the woman herself?

 

[neruda]

The triumph of individualism as we know it?
Its also an amazing comment that there is a "serves her right" in parenthesis in posts earlier than mine.....

 

[clumsy_passerby]

dude, a dog is just a dog but that woman was a person.

 

[Beachguyj]

At least the dog didn't eat her, some of them do that when faced with starvation.

 

[TickTockMan]

Its not surprising. Its actually what I think will happen to me when I die.

 

[Kouken]

This is horrible to picture :< someone dying and having not a single person notice. I get the feeling she was a ghost of a person before, always keeping to herself if she could have died and not a single person noticed. I feel bad for the dog as well since the women died of natural causes but the dog was killed before it should have died.

It's horrible either way..poor women

 

[Kester]

That is my biggest fear, that I'll end up dead and no one will notice.

Mine to. Being alone, forgotten.

 

[landers]

dude, a dog is just a dog but that woman was a person.

Dude, my dog is anything but just a dog. He is a dear and loving friend and an important member of my family whom I would gladly choose over some other members of my family. How dare you suggest otherwise.

 

[RationalLunacy]

Eleanor Rigby.

 

[TickTockMan]

Everyone dies alone.

Usually "surrounded" by people.

 

[TickTockMan]

Only physically. Spiritually, death is a trip that's taken alone.

I’m not Spiritual so I wouldn’t know.

 

[MetalSteff]

Only physically. Spiritually, death is a trip that's taken alone.

that's all a matter of opinion, since there's absolutely no proof of that.

Personnally, i believe that death is death. It's the end. IMO, there's nothing after. So in my mind, it's too bad that this woman died alone, but now she's dead, ceased existing, so it's kind of too late for anything to be done now, except look at what happened and try to ensure people around you are never put in such a situation.

 

[bankside]

dude, a dog is just a dog but that woman was a person.

Any dog owner would think first about the dog, including the woman herself I'm sure. There's no such thing as "just a dog."

 

[levenshulme31]

Shame for the dog, no big surprise for the old woman. She died, as we all do eventually, lived alone, no family or friends with a vested interest in her well being so no-one noticed. Its not like she was sat there for 18 months wondering when is someone going to notice me. She was dead.

 

[landers]

Agreed in full.

Unless you were being sarcastic. U.U

I spend about $10,000 a year on that dog in vet bills, about $70,000 in total and $10,000 since January. I wasn't being sarcastic.

 

[Fire]

Are we going to hire people in the city government to go keep tabs on people? Such a situation seems fraught with problems and the temptation to become a sort of attendance police.

Boy, you really have an axe to grind, don't you?

Any dog owner would think first about the dog, including the woman herself I'm sure. There's no such thing as "just a dog."

Dude, my dog is anything but just a dog. He is a dear and loving friend and an important member of my family whom I would gladly choose over some other members of my family. How dare you suggest otherwise.

I know it's hard to accept guys, but not everyone cares about your pets as much as you do.

 

[techboywi]

That is my biggest fear, that I'll end up dead and no one will notice.

Although I think it's an horredous indication of the community that the house was sold for back taxes without anyone actually going inside or trying to find the woman in the first place.

That is one of my biggest fears as well.. That is such a sad story.. But, I guess, maybe thats the way she wanted it. If She pulled away from society, perhaps there was a reason, or it was just a choice she made.. I'm not saying she got what she deserved, just that she must of had a reason to lock her self up in what would eventually become her coffin.

 

[Jory]

So do humans.

The Donner Party

 

[irydion]

Sometime later, the lonely dog died of thirst in the same room.

At least the dog didn't eat her, some of them do that when faced with starvation.

The dog died of THIRST, not of hunger...

I wouldn't blame the dog if he's partaken on her.

Poor dog, true.

Sad story. I'll probably die the same way.

Anyway, I've heard worse. Japan. 20 or 40 years, don't remember.