Barely one week after a Nigerian mother of three died of cancer in the United Kingdom, another Nigerian father of three, identified simply as Herbert, has been found dead in his apartment in Thornaby.
Herbert, who lived in Thornaby, died suddenly in his sleep last week in what relatives described as a shocking and heartbreaking incident, according to a post by an X user identified as ‘The Stress Manager’.
The post revealed that the deceased had been battling emotional and financial strain following the death of his father in Nigeria just days before his own passing.
“Herbert, a calm and devoted Nigerian husband and father of three young children, the youngest just eight years old, passed away suddenly in his sleep in Thornaby,” the post read.
“Only a few days before his death, he was already dealing with the pain of losing his father in Nigeria. He could not travel for the burial, but he gave everything he had financially to ensure his father had a dignified farewell. That alone drained him mentally and financially.
“Then the unimaginable happened. Herbert passed away on the very day his father was laid to rest.”
The X user added that the incident was particularly traumatic for the family, as Herbert’s children were the ones who discovered his lifeless body because his wife was away at the time.
“To make it even more heartbreaking, his children were the ones who found him that morning. No child should ever experience that,” he added.
A former president of Nigerians in the UK, Benjamin Kuti, confirmed Herbert’s death in a post on his X page on Friday and appealed to the Nigerian community in the UK to support the family.
A fundraising campaign has been launched to support the family, with an appeal to Nigerians in the UK and the wider public to assist. As of press time, £2,633 had been raised out of a £7,000 target to cover funeral and repatriation costs.
Herbert is survived by his wife and three young children, the youngest aged eight.
