A pregnant mother and her husband drowned while on vacation in Hawaii, leaving their 18-month-old son orphaned.
Ilya, 25, and Sophia, 26, Tsaruk, from Snohomish, near Seattle in Washington, are believed to have been snorkelling off the coast of the Ahihi-Kinau Nature Reserve in Maui when they got into trouble on Saturday.
The Maui Fire Department was dispatched to the area after a report of “swimmers and snorkelers in distress,” according to the Honolulu Star Advertiser.
Sophia was pregnant with a girl, according to Andrey Tupikov, who has created a GoFundMe to raise money for funeral expenses and shared a photo of the couple with their son on the page. Her Instagram profile picture showed the soon-to-be mother of two holding her pregnant belly.
The couple are survived by an 18-month-old son, Logan, who was with his aunt and uncle when the tragedy occurred.
Ilya and Sophia Tsaruk, of Snohomish, Washington, are believed to have been snorkeling off the coast of the Ahihi-Kinau Nature Reserve in Maui when they reportedly drowned.
Sophia, 26, was pregnant with a girl. The 26-year-old was found unconscious and was rescued from the water approximately 100 to 150 metres from the shore.
When rescuers arrived at the scene around noon, they found the 26-year-old woman unconscious and pulled her out of the water about 100 to 150 yards from shore, local media reported.
Ilya was later found at the bottom of the ocean and brought back to shore.
Both victims were administered CPR, but rescue efforts were unsuccessful and they were declared dead by Emergency Medical Services.
The fire department said surf conditions were relatively calm that day and the area is not known for rip currents.
The area the couple was swimming in is unguarded and the nearest lifeguard station is at Makena State Beach Park, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Fire Department spokesman Chris Stankil believes the couple must have been snorkeling based on where they were found, but he could not be certain.
Ilya, 25, was found on the ocean floor and brought back to shore. CPR was administered to both victims, but rescuers’ efforts were unsuccessful and they were declared dead (photo: Ahihi-Kinua Nature Reserve)
The area the couple was swimming in is unguarded and the nearest lifeguard station is at Makena State Beach Park (pictured: Ahihi-Kinua Nature Preserve)
However, he said the incident report did not mention that the couple was found with the equipment when Ocean Safety officers picked them up.
In a tribute to the couple on the GoFundMe page, Tupikov said they were active in church and that “Sophia had the voice of an angel and, along with Ilya, sang in a worship group at their church.”
“The Kovalevich and Tsaruk families are in mourning today, and this pain will not pass soon, but we continue to pray and rely on the Lord,” Tupikov wrote.
“We were lucky to have had both of them in our lives and we are left with the sweet memories and moments we shared together.”
The fundraiser has surpassed its $100,000 goal, raising nearly $105,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.
The money will go toward funeral expenses as well as the return of the couple’s bodies to Washington, Tupikov said.