Pensioner buys third coffin

A Romanian pensioner who bought her first coffin a decade ago to prepare for her death is now on her third.

Mariana Stangescu, 72, from Botosani, eastern Romania, outlived the first two wooden caskets.

She said: "I have no family. I am alone. When my time comes to die, I want everything to be ready for my funeral. I went out and bought everything I need, including a coffin, ten years ago."

But she explained her first coffin warped after being left on her balcony in the sun and its replacement rotted after being forgotten at the end of her garden during heavy rain, local media reported.

She added: "But I put this one in my wardrobe and I'm sure it will last longer than I do."