'Let me enjoy some water', last words of Hellen Wendy who drowned in Canada
Hellen Wendy and Enock Magara, inseparable siblings right from nursery school in Kisii, had their last jovial conversation last Wednesday night.
Magara, who had arrived in Toronto, Canada, last December, was toying with the idea of going back to school to pursue his dream of becoming a doctor, but was not sure how to go about it.
His elder sister was the only one he would talk to about it. Wendy would spend the next few minutes of their conversation encouraging and advising him on the best universities in Toronto that he could join.
A few hours after Magara had wished his sister a good night and promised to get back to her with a choice of the university he would join, the nurse’s life was cut short as she drowned in a swimming pool just a few kilometres from where they used to stay in Toronto.
“My heart sunk when I heard the news of her untimely demise,” Magara said.
In the agonising days and nights since her death, Magara has become a former shadow of himself. He now faces the daunting task of organising her funeral together with friends, explaining to his parents what happened on that fateful day, as well as dealing with the reality that his lovely sister is no more.
Last moments
Wendy’s boyfriend Alphonce Nyamwaya, with whom she had a short conversation before she headed into the swimming pool, recalls those last moments.
“I was preparing myself for the afternoon shift when she gave me a video call. She told me she was headed to the swimming pool to relax after completing her morning shift. She inquired whether I had eaten before we said goodbye to each other,” he told the Nation.
The pool where she drowned was in a private residence, according to Mr Nyamwaya.
In the video that shows her drowning, which has since gone viral, Wendy is seen engaging with friends on her Facebook page before she moves to the deep end of the swimming pool.
She then begins to sink and screams several times for help before pin-drop silence.
It’s not until three hours later that visitors who come to the swimming pool notice her body and stop the livestream.
In a conversation seen by the Nation, Wendy shares with a friend about her experiences in Canada.
“I will always be here. Even if I die this year, I don’t know whether you will come and take my body,” she jokingly says in one of the videos.
Wendy’s ambition of going abroad to seek greener pastures started after she completed her high school at Itierio Girls in 2017. She had a strong determination and knew that she had to set the bar high for the rest of her siblings.
The eldest daughter in a family of six inquired from her close friends about the process of moving to overseas countries like the United States and Canada.
Although she knew she would get an opportunity, there was one thing standing in her way; she did not know anyone in Canada.
One of her closest friends said she kept on inquiring until she got someone who had relatives in Canada and who helped her move there after she secured a greencard.
Strong desire
“She was the kind of person that you would talk to and share. She had a strong desire to go abroad. In 2018, she got a connection with a friend who helped her get there. We kept in touch until I saw the sad news,” said a friend who attended driving school with her in 2018.
In Botire village, Bomachoge Borabu, 55-year-old John Nyabuto and his wife Alice Oanda are yet to come to terms with the death of their daughter.
“Our lamp has been put [out]. She is the one who was supporting the family by paying school fees for the other siblings and it’s tragic,” Mr Nyabuto said.
Villagers had already started gathering at his home talking in low tones as they watched the video of Wendy’s drowning. It had been live-streamed on Facebook.
Wendy’s only sister, Riziki Monyenye, completed high school last year and she was expected to join university this month. Her elder sister had promised to help clear the fees required before she joins college.
According to Magara, the family is unable to raise funds to fly Wendy’s body back home for burial. They have already set up a GoFund account for contributions and those who wish to support the family can do so through telephone +254710801842.
Additional reporting by Wycliff Nyaberi
