A pregnant mum and her husband have drowned during a weekend getaway, leaving their toddler son orphaned.
Sophia Tsaruk, 26, and her partner Ilya, 25, had jetted off from Washington to Maui for a short break when the disaster struck. The dreadful incident happened around midday on Saturday.
The pair were thought to be snorkeling near the Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve when they met their untimely end, as confirmed by the Maui County Fire Department this Monday.
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(Image: KITV)
After an alert about “swimmers/snorkelers in distress” at the idyllic reserve was made, local fire brigades and sea rescue squads rushed to the scene, reports the Express US. One of the rescuers, riding a jet ski, found Sophia lifeless in the water, swiftly bringing her back to land where firefighters attempted to revive her with CPR.
As the firefighters tried desperately to save her, the jet ski rescuer returned to the sea to search for Ilya, who had vanished. Ilya was eventually discovered lying on the seabed some 100 to 150 yards from the beach, as reported by the fire department.
He too was pulled to the shore, where the emergency team performed CPR on him. Despite their efforts, both Sophia and Ilya were declared deceased on the sand, along with Sophia’s unborn child.
(Image: KITV)
The young couple leave behind their 18-month-old son, Logan, who was with his aunt and uncle while his parents were holidaying in Hawaii, as per a GoFundMe page. Relative Andrey Tupikov organised the fundraiser the day after the heartbreaking incident to help with the costs of transporting the couple’s bodies from Hawaii to Washington for funeral services.
“Yesterday, we lost a dear sister and brother, daughter and son, and beautiful niece, but we know that heaven received and gained the three of them with open arms,” Tupikov penned on Sunday.
“On September 14, 2024, Ilya and Sophia Tsaruk tragically passed away together while on vacation in Maui. They were retrieved from the ocean by lifeguards who were unable to revive them after much effort.”
Tupikov revealed that the deceased couple were expecting a baby girl at the time of their deaths. The young couple are remembered for their community service in the church, loving God, and being members of the choir.
“Ilya and Sophia both loved the Lord and were always serving in the church and serving people around them,” Tupikov wrote. The fundraiser has since raised more than £115k as of Wednesday, surpassing its benchmark of £100,000.
The couple’s funeral services are slated to begin on September 25.
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