Washington couple in Maui leaves behind toddler after snorkeling accident

HAWAII (TND) — A pregnant woman and her husband drowned while snorkeling during a vacation in Maui, Hawaii, last weekend, leaving behind an 18-month-old son.

A GoFundMe created by the family identified the couple as 25-year-old Ilya and 26-year-old Sophia Tsaruk.

The County of Maui Department of Fire & Public Safety said on Sept. 14 at around 12:02 pm, units responded to a report of swimmers and snorkelers in distress near the north side of the Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve. Officials said the incident was reported nearly 100-150 yards from shore.

Officials noted they located and recovered an unresponsive woman in the water before they took her to the shore and began CPR. Shortly after, arriving firefighters took over care while a jetski returned to the water to find the man who was reported to have been with her.

“He was located on the bottom and brought to shore, where CPR was begun on him as well,” wrote the County of Maui Department of Fire & Public Safety. “Resuscitation efforts proved to be unsuccessful, and both parties were pronounced deceased at the scene by EMS.”

The weather and ocean conditions at the time of the rescue were “mostly calm with minimal surf,” according to officials.

Family members also said the conditions the day the couple went snorkeling were calm, but speculated the mask may have caused some panic.

“That day, the water was calm, and there were no out-of-the-ordinary weather conditions or anything like that. We thought we were good. What could possibly happen?” Taisiya Tsaruk,Sophia Tsaruk’s sister-in-law, said. “When we were in the water, I experienced a loss of breath, like I could not breathe. I felt like the mask was just suffocating me, and I took the mask off to breathe.”

“Sophia was pregnant with a baby girl, and they left behind their 18-month-old baby, Logan, who was staying with his aunt and uncle at the time,” the family said.

Any remaining funds of their $100,000 goal will go towards their son’s future, according to the family.

“There are so many hurdles that we foresee in making sure that he is taken care of in every way, and we are so grateful that so many people have opened their hearts to help,” the post read.

Family members shared the couple was vacationing in Maui on their “babymoon” with other family members.

“They were prepping the baby room for her, and they were so excited for life and what it would bring for them next,” Taisiya Tsaruk shared.

The couple’s family shared they were going to name their child Melody after her parents’ love of singing. Sophia was about 30 weeks pregnant, and the baby was due in December.

“Her (Sophia’s) birthday’s the day after Christmas, so she was always talking about how she might deliver this baby girl that she was dreaming about on her birthday,” Ilona Tsymbalyuk, Sophia’s sister, shared.