A healthcare worker drowned while filming on Facebook’s livestream feature in Canada in mid-August.
Hellen Nyabuto, 24, moved to Canada from Kenya in 2018, where she most recently worked at a long-term care facility in Chatsworth, Ontario, according to the Toronto Star. She died less than a mile from the facility while recording herself on a Facebook livestream in a motel swimming pool, the outlet reported.
The video was removed from Facebook shortly after the Star reviewed the footage, which reportedly showed Nyabuto smiling and swimming in the shallow end of the pool for about three minutes. She then moved to the far end of the pool, where she was seen struggling before moving out of the frame, the Star continued.
Father of Hellen Wendy Nyabuto, a 24-yr-old Kenyan nurse based in Canada, confirms her death; she livestreamed her swimming session on Facebook before drowning. pic.twitter.com/Fi40ioJLdr
— The Standard Digital (@StandardKenya) August 20, 2022
After several minutes, the water and livestream went still, the Star noted. The livestream continued to film for several hours before motel guests were seen entering the water, the outlet continued. The guests could then be heard as they discovered Nyabuto’s body and called the motel front desk for help, the Star reported.
“Hellen was the breadwinner back home for her family. She’s been supporting them and it’s left a big gap,” a close friend told the Star, “We need prayers. We need financial support.”
Nyabuto had not returned home to Kenya since moving to Canada, so her family is now trying to figure out how to pay an estimated $50,000 to have her body repatriated, the Star noted. “We’re discussing with the Kenyan community what avenue we want to take. Her family has not yet decided what to do,” her friend added. (RELATED: Video Of Vape Store Owner Stabbing Alleged Attempted Thief 7 Times Goes Viral)
A number of deaths have occurred during live streams in recent years. Two children died in March when a gun they were playing with discharged during an Instagram livestream at a party. In 2020, a Russian Youtuber was arrested after he forced his pregnant girlfriend to stand outside in freezing temperatures during a livestream, killing her.