Collins Masinde, a Catholic scholastic brother born in Lugari, died after a large wave swept him off a rock into the sea in South Africa on Friday at around 11 a.m.
Bro. Masinde, a member of the St. Joseph’s Oblate Scholasticate community in Cedara, South Africa, was on a retreat before the tragedy.
As of Saturday evening, Masinde’s body had not been located or retrieved, despite an immediate response and thorough searches by police and sea rescuers.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the news of a tragic accident that occurred yesterday, January 12, at the beginning of the annual retreat of the Oblate Scholastics at the Capuchin Convent in Melville, South Africa,” read part of a post shared by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate-OMI Lacombe Canada Facebook page.
Collins, 29, is the sixth of ten children of Eliud Masinde Mwangale and Florance Khakali from Lugari Sub-County in Kakamega County.
“Collins completed his postulancy in Meru Town in 2017 and entered the Pre-Novitiate in 2018 in Karen, Nairobi. He was due to begin his second year of studies at St. Joseph’s Oblate Scholasticate in Cedara, South Africa, and was to make his first renewal of vows later this month,” the post by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate-OMI Lacombe Canada Facebook page further read.
Sam Oduor is the editor-in-chief at the Western Kenya Times who leverages the power of the Internet in telling stories that shape opinions.