TRIBUTES have been paid to a married couple who were found dead at their Torfaen home on Wednesday.

Ron, 73, and Heather Lloyd, 70, of Channel View, who had been married for 34 years, were found by police officers after concerns were raised by Mrs Lloyd's daughter who had not heard from them for a short while.

Samantha Manley, a mother-of-four who lives in Trevethin, said: “We were regularly in touch on the phone and when I hadn’t heard from her, I thought that something was wrong.

"It was out of the ordinary – I had a funny feeling that something wasn’t right,” she said.

“I thought that wasn’t like my mum. At this point I called the police as this was very out of character for her."

The 44-year-old said she called the police after visiting the couple's Penygarn home last Wednesday.

“I saw the recycling box was still there. I went around the back, looked through the window where I saw the bread on the side. She was always so tidy - there wouldn't ever be anything on the worktops," said Mrs Manley.

Gwent Police entered the house and found both Mr and Mrs Lloyd dead. The deaths are still being treated as unexplained and investigations are still ongoing.

Along with her siblings, Anthony Lloyd, 30, and Michelle (Parfitt), 38, the family are rallying round, supporting each other at this shocking time.

“It is time like this where family becomes even more important. My brother, Anthony, was devastated when he found out and my sister, Michelle (Parfitt) is coping with the news, but we are all in shock,” added Mrs Manley.

“What I can take from this is that when my mum last saw Anthony, he told her that his health was improving as he’s not been very well recently. That made her feel happy as I know she was very worried about him.”

Mrs Manley believes that since the death of her brother Gareth, who was 46-year-old when he died in 2015 from pneumonia, her mother struggled to come to terms with the loss.

She said: “I think in a way that may have been when I noticed that mum was starting to struggle. She didn’t take the news very well.”

The family are in the process of making a decision over Mr and Mrs Lloyd’s final resting place, but are keen to keep the couple together.

“We will have to discuss what happens next but we would like them to be cremated together. They were together until the end and they will remain that way,” said Mrs Manley.

“They are at peace and at rest now. We can take comfort from that. We can take some comfort in knowing that they were not alone at the end.”

Mrs Manley wanted to thank her two best friends Cindy and Amanda who have been supporting her during this time and she paid tribute to her mum and to her step-dad.

“She was so proud of her grandchildren – each of them. She loved them all to bits,” said Mrs Manley, who was Mr Lloyd’s step-daughter.

“She tried to see her grandchildren whenever she could, and I know just how happy it made her to see them playing and having fun.”

Mrs Manley wanted to thank her two best friends Cindy and Amanda who have been supporting her during this time.