AfriPulse
A 24-year old Kenyan woman reportedly drowned and died in a river in Canada, according to media reports.
The 24-year-old, identified as Benina Jepkoech, is said to have drowned in a river in Kamloops, B.C., some 350 kilometers northeast of Vancouver.
Reporting by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Jepkoech’s car went into the North Thompson River moments after 6:30pm on Sunday, May 17.
In the car was a 21-year-old passenger who was pulled from the river and survived the incident.
An undated photo of Benina Jepkoech posing for a photo in Canada.
Photo
Jacinta Mugo
Speaking to the media after identifying Jepkoech, another Kenyan and a friend of the deceased since 2022, Jacinta Mugo said on the fateful day, her friend came to her house with another friend in the car who came to borrow a blow dryer.
According to Mugo, after giving them the blow dryer, Jepkoech suggested that she drive the car despite having little experience driving in Canada.
“She wanted to eventually buy a car for herself, and she had not been driving, she’d never driven here in Canada before,” Mugo told CBC.
In her interview, Mugo, who was a close friend of the deceased, said she suspects Jepkoech panicked when she reached Schubert Drive, a two-lane highway, one lane in each direction.
Jepkoech was used to driving cars in Kenya, where the law prescribes drivers keep left, as opposed to Canada, where drivers keep right.
“I think due to the panic … she accidentally turned all the wheels to the right, facing the river,” she said.
Adding, “And then instead of probably pressing on the brakes, she pressed on the gas, and that’s when the car flew and plunged into the river.”
Jepkoech had been living in Canada for about a year and worked at two different hotels.
“We are ready for any outcome, whether she’s alive, whether she’s not, we just want her to be found,” Mugo said.
Jacinta Mugo posing with a picture of her friend Benina Jepkoech in Canada, May 2026.
Photo
CBC
Source: Kenyans.co.ke | Read the Full Story…
