Roseau, Dominica - A woman who claimed to be the world's oldest living person at the age of 128 died on Tuesday at a hospital in Dominica, friends of hers said.
Elizabeth Israel, who went by the nickname Ma Pampo, had been taken to hospital for treatment on Monday night and died of flu complications at the main Princess Margaret Hospital, officials said.
A radio broadcaster called her death a tremendous loss to this small nation, one of the poorest in the Caribbean.
"I always viewed her as the last remaining link connecting this present to our past and it's a very big loss," said Alex Bruno, who is also director of the Ma Pampo Foundation.
Israel is survived by three grandchildren.