A search that stretched across several days on a British Columbia lake has ended with the recovery of two Filipino paddleboarders, a married couple who slipped beneath the surface during a weekend outing and never came back up.
Genesis Jeru Bague and Mariz Bello, both from the Philippines, were identified as the victims, according to the CBC. The recently married pair had travelled to Browning Lake on Saturday, May 30, to mark a friend’s birthday, the man’s brother, Genesis Hanzel Bague, told the broadcaster. He described a couple drawn to the outdoors, who spent their time hiking and camping, and said his brother had hoped to join the police force in British Columbia one day.
The friend filming the group did not immediately sense anything was wrong. “The friend who was recording the video thought at first that they were just chilling and hanging out on the paddleboard. [In] a few seconds, [there was] no signs of [them] trying to get back up, and it all went from there,” Bague said. As it became clear the two were in distress, those nearby tried to intervene. Friends “said that they called for help. They started yelling if they could help,” he added.
The Squamish detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a news release that the alarm was raised at 3 p.m. local time on May 30, when a report came in that two paddleboarders had entered the water and failed to resurface. Investigators responded and a search was launched.
A police recovery team returned to the lake on Tuesday, June 2, and located both bodies during that operation. Officers credited the agencies and units brought in to assist. “We are deeply grateful for the dedicated support and coordinated efforts of our specialized teams and partner agencies who assisted in this search,” police said.
For Bague, speaking about the loss was partly about making sure others understood what had taken place. “I just want everyone, all their close friends, to know what happened,” he told the CBC.
