Super centenarian Jiroemon Kimura, a 116-year-old, passed away early in the morning on June 12, 2013 in Kyoto prefecture in western Japan. The city officials said that Kimura, who was born in 1897, passed away of natural causes at the municipal hospital in his hometown of Kyotango city, at 2:08 am local time on Wednesday, June 12, 2013.
A spokesperson from the hospital said that he was suffering from pneumonia and was hospitalized since May of this year. Yasushi Nakamura, Mayor of Kyotango city, said in a statement that Kimura has been and will always be the city’s treasure. The Mayor also expressed profound sadness over his death.
The oldest man in the world was first recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest living person on December 17, 2012. Kimura received the title after the former oldest person in the world, a 115-year-old woman from Iowa, died.
Kimura celebrated his 116th birthday in April of this year. The super centenarian had seven children, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren and 15 great-great-great grandchildren. The spokesperson also said that Kimura’s funeral will take place on June 14, 2013. After his passing, the oldest living person in the world is 115-year-old Misao Okawa in Japan’s Osaka city.
