A Kenyan Young Man drops Dead in New York
by Harrison Maina

BOSTON, Mass, APRIL 1- A 22 year old Kenyan man dropped dead as soon as he arrived at his two month old, first ever job in the USA.
The incident happened yesterday at around 10. AM in  Poughkeepsie, near Hyde Park, New York.

Mr. Philip Gichuki Muturi had just arrived in the USA last year, 2008 and was a student at the Dutchess Community College in Poughkeepsie, New York and was living with his sister Ruth Muturi and her husband, Cyrus Waiguru Kiringi and their two and a half year old daughter.

The information of the sudden death was broken to AjabuAfrica.com by Pastor Ken Nyaga of Worcester MA after a parishioner, Mrs . Mungai who used to live with the young man together with her son, Moses Mungai   in New York before she relocated to Massachusetts called to inform the pastor of the sad developments.

Talking on the phone with the dead Kenyan’s friend, AjabuAfrica.com found out that the late young man had just found a job at the Anderson School, a specialized school taking care of people with mental disabilities.

“It was his day off from school and he went for one hour training on Crisis Intervention at his new job”, said Mr. Mungai.

According to Mr. Mungai, his friend had just entered the training room when he said hi to one friend and then collapsed.

“The school trainers immediately started performing CPR and AED on Philip and everything else as they called up Emergency help”.

 He said that paramedics arrived minutes later and took the young man to the Vassar Hospital in the same city where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The news was a complete shock to the family and friends who know the young man.
 Mr. Mungai said that his friend’s sister was so devastated that she was in a state of shock.

The young Kenyan’s brother in law, Mr. Cyrus Waiguru Karigi, said that he had just arrived to their home yesterday morning from work so that the young man could go to work in his car.

“Philip had been taking care our daughter during the night shifts that me and my wife work”, said the brother in Law.

 “I arrived early in the morning so that I could lend him my car so he could attend training at his new job, and he left in very high spirits. We are all devastated by this “, added Mr. Kirigi.
 
The brother in law told AjabuAfrica.com that he has just received a call from the hospital this morning, (Wednesday) which said that his brother in law died of cardiac arrest and that initial tests have not revealed any other problem.

The dead young Kenyan was very ambitious and his friends say that he wanted to become a doctor.He hailed from Githurai, near Nairobi, Kenya and arrived in the USA in January, 2008.

He was also very outgoing and used to come to visit friends in New England on numerous occasions.
 
“This guy was my friend and he even came to my graduation last July, said Mr. Paul Karanja of Derry, New Hampshire. I am just shocked”, he said upon learning of the untimely death of his friend.

The late Philip and friends spent a night at Paul’s house in New Hampshire last year before driving   to Springfield to visits more friends.

 “There is a very small population of Kenyans in this area and we are asking for help from everywhere”, Mr. Kirigi said of Poughkeepsie, a city with about 70 Kenyans in the vicinity.

The family has just established a Bank account which will be used to collect funds to repatriate the body of the young man back to Kenya.

Please Send your Donations to :

Bank of America
Account Name: Cyrus waiguru
Account # : 483022965245
Routing # : 021000322

For more info, contact the family at:

19 Fairview Ave Ext, Poughkeepsie,NY 12601.
Contact info; Cyrus and Ruth; (845) 473 8709 or (845) 238 1725
Moses Machua (845) 489 5679

Ajabuafrica.com wishes to pass our deepest sympathies to the family of the late Philip.