The death of a woman whose body was found in her Christchurch flat is not suspicious, police say.
The 56-year-old woman was found dead in her Linwood flat early today.
Police said a post-mortem examination done this afternoon confirmed the death was not suspicious and it had been referred to the coroner.
The woman's stepbrother said he had seen her yesterday (EDS: Wed) afternoon and she had been on "top form", cracking jokes and making him laugh.
He thought her asthma condition may have caused her death and said he understood her partner found her unresponsive and alerted emergency services about 2am.
"I was only with her yesterday afternoon, having a few nice, quiet drinks. She was on top form. She was so happy, she made me laugh all day."
The man said his stepsister had been "in and out of hospital a lot lately with real bad asthma attacks".
"She'd been pumped up on steroids, and had a back operation recently. That must be behind it.
He said the woman, a beneficiary, was a "cheerful, active person" who did a lot of volunteer work in the community.
"If anyone was in trouble, she'd be the first to help them. She had a big heart."
