Family identifies couple involved in paddleboarding accident near Squamish

Family identifies couple involved in paddleboarding accident near Squamish

Search continues for 2 paddleboarders who went missing after falling into Browning Lake at Murrin Park

The search continues for two missing paddleboarders near Squamish, B.C.

Family say Genesis Jeru Bague and Mariz Bello were joining friends for a birthday party at Murrin Provincial Park on Saturday when the tragic incident unfolded.

Genesis’s brother, Genesis Hanzel Bague, said the couple has been together for a number of years and moved to Vancouver from the Philippines, where they recently got married.

"He’s very adventurous, and he loves to do outdoor things," said Genesis Hanzel Bague.

Bague said a person was filming the couple while they were on a paddleboard together at Browning Lake around 3 p.m. PT.

"At first, they were just chilling and hanging out on the paddleboard, and a little bit later they saw that both of them were kind of struggling," Bague said.

A video shows the couple in the water holding onto the paddleboard.

"I know my brother, everybody's telling me that he's not going to ask for help, like he's going to try to do it on his own," Bague said.

In the video, the paddleboard flips over, and the couple appears to struggle in the water.

"That's when they started to panic," Bague said. "They said that they called for help, they started yelling … I think a couple of people went there, but it took some time."

Their bodies have not been recovered and Bague hopes they can soon have closure.

"Everybody wants updates, but unfortunately I wasn't able to give anything yet," Bague said.

He hopes that by sharing what happened, the couple's friends and family can learn that it was an accident.

"I just want everyone, like all of their close friends, to know what happened because I don't know everyone," Bague said. "It's very sudden."

Bague said his brother was hoping to become a police officer in B.C.

"He's working out a lot, and he's really putting a lot of effort into joining the Vancouver police," Bague said. "I was really excited for him because I think it's really his dream."

The couple enjoyed being outdoors together, hiking and camping, he said

Bague describes his brother, who is 33 and one year older than him, as a very disciplined person who supports his family in the Philippines.

"He supports my dad, who's ill right now, sends the money over there," Bague said. "Everyone around him loves him."

Squamish RCMP Cpl. Katrina Boehmer said RCMP Air Services, Squamish Search and Rescue, Squamish Fire Rescue, B.C. park rangers and RCMP officers responded to the park around 3 p.m. PT Saturday.

"The [RCMP] underwater recovery team attended a little bit later in the evening, but their search was also unsuccessful at the time," Boehmer said.

An underwater camera was used to search roughly 4.5 metres deep into the water, but it was unsuccessful in locating them.

Boehmer said sonar equipment was also used.

"It's just a very unfortunate thing that happened," Bague said. "They just recently got their residency last year, and they're starting to settle, have a better life, support their families."

The search is expected to continue on Tuesday with the teams returning to the area.