A German baker has saved two of her regular customers' lives after growing concerned when the elderly couple disappeared for several days, police said on Friday.
The 57-year-old owner of the bakery in Speyer in western Germany visited the couple's flat on Thursday after the pair failed to turn up as usual for several days.
She heard faint cries for help from the wife through the door and immediately dialled the emergency services.
The couple, aged 71 and 72, had apparently been lying helpless in their flat for two to three days, according to a police spokesman.
The emergency services opened the door, attended to the couple and then took them to hospital.
The police praised the bakery owner. "Thanks to her alert intervention, the elderly couple were helped just in time."