Husband, Pregnant Wife Die Tragically in Vacation Snorkeling Accident

A husband and his wife, who was pregnant with their second child, tragically died last weekend while snorkeling in Hawaii.

“Maui firefighters and ocean safety personnel responded to the report of swimmers/snorkelers in distress in the area along the north side of Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve,” the Maui County Fire Department said of the Sept. 14 incident in a statement.

One of the officials spotted “an unresponsive 26-year-old female” whom he pulled from the water and brought back to shore to receive CPR. As officials worked on the woman, searchers returned to the water in search of her 25-year-old husband. The fire department reported that he was found “on the bottom [of the ocean], 100-150 yards from shore.”

“Resuscitation efforts proved to be unsuccessful, and both parties were pronounced deceased at the scene by EMS," the statement continued.

Authorities have not released the names of the deceased, but a GoFundMe page confirmed their identities as Ilya Tsaruk, 25, and Sophia Kovalevich, 26. “Sophia was pregnant with a baby girl, and they leave behind their 18-month-old baby, Logan, who was staying with his aunt and uncle at the time,” organizer Andrey Tupikov wrote.

The fundraiser, which has raised nearly $120,000 on a $100,000 goal, will be used to pay for funeral and transportation expenses. “Remaining funds, after all transport and funeral expenses, will be responsibly allocated and put away to help facilitate little Logan’s future life,” Tupikov said. “There are so many hurdles that we foresee in making sure that he is taken care of in every way, and we are so thankful that so many people have opened their hearts to help.”

Tsaruk and Kovalevich’s funerals will be held on Sept. 25. “We are blessed to have had both of them in our lives and are left now with the sweet memories and moments that we shared together with them," Tupikov wrote.