Woman Watched TV For 35 Years... While Dead

[irerancincpkc]

Woman watched TV for 35 years ... while dead
Posted Jun 20th 2008 9:03AM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: OpEd, Obituaries, Reality-Free, The Twilight Zone

Here's a story that sounds like something out of The Twilight Zone. The episode could be titled "No Man Is an Island?" Or maybe "Perchance to Dream," although that title was already taken.

It's the story of Hedviga Golik, a woman who brewed herself a cup of tea, then settled down to watch some relaxing TV in her hometown of Zagreb, Croatia. Apparently, the show was either really boring or the tea was ultra-relaxing, because Golik died that same night.

Okay, all this sounds plausible, but not this next part: According to an Associated Press report, forensics experts believe Golik likely died in 1973. Her mummified body was just found, 35 years later.

Police said Friday that no one ever reported Golik missing, and no one has come to claim her body. Residents of her loft building in downtown Zagreb had broken into her flat after deciding the apartment should belong to them. Startled by the remains (I can imagine), they called the police.

Expert Davor Strinovic said Golik seemed to have died of natural causes, but "it's almost impossible to say for certain" after so much time. Some of her neighbors claimed she had talked about going abroad.

Like me, you're probably wondering a few things:

Did no one smell the decaying body? Apparently not. Experts said her windows had been open, likely diminishing the stench. (But they were open for 35 years?)

Who was paying her bills all that time? That's still unclear, as is the identity of the apartment's owner. In the 1970's, when Golik allegedly died, apartments were state-owned.
What show was she watching when she died? Well, given the year, it's possible she was watching an episode of The Twilight Zone. Hey, those shows can be pretty terrifying. I'm betting it was "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet." Certainly scared the crap out of me.
What will happen to the apartment now? The remaining tenants (still living, to my knowledge) argue that the apartment should be divided among them. Really? They're that hard up for housing?

And of course, the big question: Is the human race becoming so isolated that no one notices a dead neighbor after 35 years? In Croatia, that certainly appears to be true.

[Brita]

~~~starts humming the Twilight Zone theme~~~

Thanks Spammer, now I'll have that stuck in my head all day.

...I'm starting to get a little freaked out by the creepy, suspenseful tune...

~~looks around suspiciously at co-workers~~

[Gilshalos Sedai]

Just don't drink tea while watching the Twilight Zone.


How on earth would a corpse get mummified in a house with the windows open?

[irerancincpkc]

How on earth would a corpse get mummified in a house with the windows open?
I don't know what elevation Croatia is at, or what the climate is like there, but could that have anything to do with it?

[Gilshalos Sedai]

It could and Croatia is mountainous, IIRC. But it still snows there.

[Davian93]

It could and Croatia is mountainous, IIRC. But it still snows there.

it snows quite a bit...and the coastline is more of a med. climate which might do it. You'd think she'd have just rotted. Was the TV still on? How would a TV actually function for 35 years straight without breaking?

[irerancincpkc]

How would a TV actually function for 35 years straight without breaking?
Yeah, you'd think if the power went out once, the TV wouldn't come back on. I'd love to see them track down the woman's family and ask them where the heck they have been.

[Sarevok]

I don't think it said anywhere in the article that the tv was still on. It just made a nice headline.

[Brita]

I'd love to see them track down the woman's family and ask them where the heck they have been.

Very probable that there may not have been any. There has been more than one example of a reclusive elderly person with no kin or friends to speak of.

[Gilshalos Sedai]

Doubt the TV was still on, or they wouldn't have said they thought the apartment was vacant.

[irerancincpkc]

Doubt the TV was still on, or they wouldn't have said they thought the apartment was vacant.
I didn't get the impression the neighbors were that bright. They only found her body after breaking into the place, and it still boggles my mind that they didn't smell anything.

[Davian93]

I didn't get the impression the neighbors were that bright. They only found her body after breaking into the place, and it still boggles my mind that they didn't smell anything.

If you had ever been to Croatia, that wouldn't be a surprise...much of the Balkans (other than the major major cities) are very 3rd world esque in smell. Something rotting wouldn't stand out.

[Gilshalos Sedai]

Well, after about a month, there wouldn't be a lot to smell what with the mummification process starting and all.


Maybe someone in the building had a reputation for cooking some really rank food?

Just after college, I was living in this apartment complex that was rather cheap. There was this Indian family living next door to me. All I ever smelled when I came home from work was burnt curry. All. the. time.

[Brita]

So it's plausible in 3/4 details:

1. No family or friends
2. Smell unnoticed.
3. State owned apartment

So the debate is detail 4: Can her body be mummified in an airy room? Extremely dry conditions are needed. And winter and snow are dry conditions (as my skin in February can attest to)- so it seems plausible. Is Croatia a dry climate?

[irerancincpkc]

I got this from Weather Online.

Croatia can be divided into three Climatic regions. In the north are the Pannonian Plains, lowlands with a continental climate of cold winters and hot summers. Central Croatia consists of the mountainous Dinara Region, which is covered with large forests and has an alpine climate.

The Adriatic coast enjoys a Mediterranean climate of cool, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. Winter temperatures range from -1 to 30°C in the continental region, -5 to 0°C in the mountain region and 5 to 10°C in the coastal region. Summer temperatures range from 22 to 26°C in the continental region, 15 to 20°C in the mountain region and 26 to 30°C in the coastal region.

[Brita]

Hmmm- but rainy winters...

This needs to be 35 years of weather that would not cause the body to decay. Any natural mummy removed from the conditions that led to the mummification (i.e. cave, swamp, frigid mountains) will decompose quickly when exposed to air/moisture (at least from what I've read).

So even one rainy summer with the windows open would probably have had a significant effect.

[irerancincpkc]

That is a problem... I'm going to have to go read up on this...

[irerancincpkc]

Okay, I looked up Zagreb, where she is from, and this is from Wikipedia.

The climate of Zagreb is continental, with four separate seasons. Summers are hot and dry, and winters are cold. The average temperature in winter is 1 °C (34 °F) and the average temperature in summer is 20 °C (68 °F). Particularly, the end of May gets very warm with temperatures rising above 30 °C (86 °F). Snowfall is common in the winter months, from December to March, and rain and fog are common in fall (October to December).[4]

Doesn't really help; same problem. I found a CNN article that again mentions she was mummified, but doesn't mention how that is possible. And reading about mummification; I don't see how it could have happened...

[Anaiya Sedai]

eww

[Crispin's Crispian]

Okay, I looked up Zagreb, where she is from, and this is from Wikipedia.



Doesn't really help; same problem. I found a CNN article that again mentions she was mummified, but doesn't mention how that is possible. And reading about mummification; I don't see how it could have happened...
It's quite possible to have snowy winters in dry conditions. It happens all the time.

However, I also think it's quite possible that they are misusing the word "mummified."

[Figbiscuit]

Also what about bugs? And theives? If the windows were open for 35 years surely flies would have got in and laid eggs, and I don't know about the rest of you but I can't see a window being open for 35 years without some young entrepeneur taking a look inside.

[irerancincpkc]

And those bright, young entrepeneurs were more than likely scared someone would wonder why they were looking for business in a place that wasn't their own, and hence did not report their discovery...

[Nazbaque]

in that time all that would have been left would be bones unless the body really did mummify. And I agree with Fig: dry or not bugs would have done the job with the windows open.

And the entrepeneurs might not have reported it but a rumor should have started about it in any case. Maybe the potentials added 2+2=4 in the sense of: windows open = someone is home and went for other targets.