Man meets family 26 years after they were told he was dead!

• The news of Rudolph's death was given to other family members who believed it to be true.

For 26 years, a man was presumed dead by his daughter after someone at a concrete plant he worked wrongly told her he suffered a heart-attack.

Ronnie Rudolph had an emotional reunion with his daughter and other family members in Tennessee after being 'dead' for almost three decades. Rudolph took up work at a concrete plant in Lebanon after splitting from his wife years ago. Their daughter, Janie Rudolph, would keep in touch with Rudolph once in a while by calling him at his job.

According to WTVF reports quoted in MSN, one day 26 years ago, Janie called the plant to speak with her father when she was given the news that Rudolph had died due to a heart attack. "I believed it and I didn't investigate it. I moved around, I was married and I had my family and I didn't have money, so I just felt like I couldn't do anything much," she said.

The news of Rudolph's death was given to other family members who also believed it to be true and moved on without questioning his death. However, the truth that Rudolph was alive came to light only after his wife died four months ago. "I started looking for a death certificate and I could not find one on my father, so we were thinking he might be alive somewhere," Janie said.

Janie soon discovered her father was still alive, living in Lebanon. "I was very much in shock, I couldn't believe it, I thought I was having a dream," Janie said who could trace her father with help of her own daughter. For all these years as Janie never called up Rudolph even once, he had thought his family did not want him anymore. Two weeks later Janie contacted Rudolph and they planned a family reunion to celebrate.

Rudolph's family members travelled from Georgia and Kentucky to join in the heartwarming reunion in Tennessee. "It feels good," an elated Rudolph said. He also met his sister, Juanita Elliot, 84, whom he last saw at their father's funeral in 1992. "I was happy and glad to hear it and here I am 84 years old and he's just 72, if anybody is supposed to be dead it ought to be me," Elliott said.

It was later revealed that Rudolph had not suffered a heart attack at all instead he had two strokes, making it difficult for him to speak. However, it is not known why Janie was told her father had died, leading to years of separation.