A friend of Delphina Wambui Ngigi, a woman who died in Canada, has revealed the struggles the mum of four faced before visiting Canada and the hardships she endured when she relocated to the North American nation before her demise.
Wambui who was a widow, died on February 18, a few days after she sought asylum in the foreign country.
Speaking during an interview, the lady explained that Wambui died waiting in the cold outside a shelter home.
According to the lady who spoke to KDTV on Monday, Wambui decided to relocate to Canada in February 2024 did so after losing her job and her father. At the time, she wanted to give her children a better life.
To that end, she applied for a Visa, a request which was granted. She then began preparing for her trip including booking tickets and getting suitable clothes for the cold Canadian weather.
During the interview, the lady revealed that Wambui was initially planning to travel on February 9 but was turned away at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on grounds that she could not travel to Canada through Europe.
She was also rebuffed for a second time before she eventually succeeded on a third attempt.
"She was not given a reason why she could not go to Canada through Europe. When she arrived the next day, she was supposed to go to the shelter but I was not available to take her there" the friend stated.
When she arrived, Wambui went to her friend's house and was set to go to the shelter the next day. Her friend took her to the shelter as required and left hoping that Wambui would settle in seamlessly.
Meanwhile, the deceased was asked to stay outside at the shelter alongside two others to allow the shelter managers to create room at the shelter which is typically full most of the time. As requested, she stayed outside for hours before she was asked to proceed to the reception.
"I asked her to be patient since it was her only option for getting help. It is a must for her to go through the shelter since she came as a refugee," the friend stated.
This was a sign that things were headed in the right direction for Wambui who was determined to begin a new life in the North American country.
Notably, Wambui was in constant communication with her friend while at the shelter. She is also said to have been in communication with her children.
In their last conversation, the friend told Wambui to ask for a place to freshen up at the shelter.
According to the friend, she later received a late call and was informed that Wambui was dead. She informed Wambui's family about the incident adding that her children were the most affected by Wambui's demise.
"I was told one ambulance came and the medics attempted to conduct CPR. She was later ferried to the hospital in an ambulance. It is not clear whether she died in the ambulance or the hospital," the lady added.
Currently family and friends are seeking to raise Ksh5.8 million (USD40,000) to bring her body back to Kenya. So far Ksh595,300 has been raised towards this cause.
