Kenyan woman drowns in swimming pool in Canada during Facebook livestream
A Kenyan woman reportedly drowned in a swimming pool in Canada while livestreaming on Facebook last Thursday.
The livestream — which is no longer available — shows the woman who goes by Hellen Wendy on Facebook swimming in the water, while occasionally returning poolside to chat live with her friends.
“It’s two o’clock here. Nimetoka job, niko poa (just left work, I’m good); just having fun,” she said at the two-minute mark of the video. This was translated from Swahili to English by African news publication The Citizen.
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She is last seen at the 10-minute mark diving into the deep end of the pool. At around 10:35, she’s seen splashing in the water, struggling to stay afloat while screaming.
Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it responded to a report of a drowning in Chatsworth — a community in Grey County, Ontario — on August 18 at 5:44 pm.
“An individual was removed from the water and pronounced deceased after life-saving
measures were unsuccessful,” stated media relations officer Const. Nick Wilson in a news release. “They have been identified as 23-year-old Hellen Nyabuto from North York.”
The incident is still under investigation, but police say it’s “non-suspicious in nature.”
Nyabuto’s family has announced her death on Facebook and through a GoFundMe campaign.
The 23-year-old’s younger brother, Enock Nyabuto, posted a message on Facebook sharing a link to the fundraiser.
He says she lived in Toronto and worked a temporary job in Collingwood. The rest of their family lives in Kisii, Kenya.
“As we all know my sister Hellen Wendy passed in Ontario, Canada, after drowning in the swimming pool,” wrote Enock.
“It is such a devastating and sad moment because she was our sole breadwinner and was the one who was in charge of everything back at home. She has left a very big gap that we cannot fill at the moment.”
He urged anyone who could to donate to their GoFundMe, which is raising money for funeral and burial arrangements, and Nyabuto’s body’s repatriation to Nairobi.
According to Enock, the cost to repatriate the body is about $50,000.
The fundraiser has raised just over $49,500 and counting as of Wednesday.
A few international news organizations have reported that the incident occurred in either Toronto or Collingwood, Ontario.
Toronto police told Daily Hive that they did not receive any reports about Nyabuto’s drowning on August 18.
Daily Hive also confirmed with the OPP that there were no reports of a drowning in Collingwood.
Daily Hive has also reached out to Wendy’s brother for comment.
Editor’s note: The OPP officially confirmed Hellen Nyabuto’s identity on August 24, 2022.