French Woman's Skeleton Found Six Years After Death

Paris: Firefighters in France have found the skeleton of a woman in her apartment nearly six years after her death, raising concerns about elderly French people living in isolation, media reports said on Thursday.

The fire crew discovered the woman's remains in the French city of Rouen Tuesday after a neighbour filed a complaint about a water leak, the Local reported, adding that it led them to force open the door to the woman's apartment in order to turn off the water.

Police said they were looking for the woman's relatives, if any, and why they had not contacted her in six years.

"It doesn't surprise me. Here it's everyone for themselves," a resident told French daily Le Parisien.

Authorities said the elderly woman's bills were paid automatically and her pension arrived by wire transfer.

According to a charity group report released earlier this week, France has an alarmingly high number of elderly people living in isolation.

Of the five million people living alone in France, 27 percent are over 75 years of age, which is an increase of 10 percent from 2010, says the report published by Fondation de France.