Jimmy Irungu announces 50-hour sleep challenge weeks after collapsing hugging a tree
By Steve Ireri, April 3, 2026Pastor Jimmy Irungu has announced a new endurance challenge in which he plans to sleep for 50 hours continuously as part of efforts to raise awareness about cancer, just weeks after collapsing during his previous tree-hugging attempt.
In a post shared on his TikTok, the preacher revealed that the challenge will begin on Friday, April 3, 2026, at 10 am and run through to Sunday, April 5, 2026.
He noted that the initiative is aimed at creating awareness about cancer and added that a nurse will be present throughout the period to monitor his condition.
“50-hour challenge, April 3rd, 2026, from 10 am Friday to Sunday. This is for cancer awareness. I will also have a nurse watching over me,” he wrote.
According to Kikuyu YouTuber Paxson Chege Ngunya, the pastor is now shifting to a different approach to sustain the awareness campaign.
He explained that Irungu will carry out the sleep challenge in Kenol town, where he will set up a hospital bed and remain there for the entire duration.
“Jimmy Irungu tried to hug a tree for 79 hours in Murang’a town, and now he is seeking to do another challenge to create awareness about cancer,” Paxson said.
Paxson further noted that during the challenge, the pastor will alternate between sleeping, sitting, and turning on the bed, mimicking the experience of cancer patients as a way of highlighting the realities they face.
The YouTuber added that the initiative is intended to deepen public understanding of the disease and the struggles endured by those undergoing treatment.
“He will be in Kenol town, where he will go with a bed and sleep for 50 hours, meaning he will complete it on Sunday. He will use a hospital bed and will be sleeping, turning, and even sitting on the bed just like a cancer patient does, to create more awareness about this disease,” Paxson added.
The announcement comes after his earlier attempt to hug a tree for 80 hours in Murang’a town, which ended prematurely after he collapsed in the 79th hour and was rushed to hospital.
The challenge had been part of his broader campaign to draw attention to the growing burden of cancer in the country.