London -
A grieving British couple in the habit of comforting themselves by texting messages to the cellphone they buried with their grandmother three years ago told on Thursday of their shock at receiving a cheery reply.
“I'm watching over you and it's all going to get better. Just push through,” a text ostensibly from the late Lesley Emerson said.
Despite promising not to, the phone company had sold the number on to a new subscriber, who was unaware of its spooky provenance.
“Obviously we know that nan wasn't ever going to reply to our texts,” Sheri Emerson told her local paper. “You can imagine what I was thinking seeing a message flash up from her.”
The Shields Gazette, which covers the region near the north-east of England city of Newcastle, said the provider had pledged to fulfil its promise of withdrawing the number from service. - Sapa-dpa