Deceased/Not Found HI - Bryce Essler, 20, Maui, Feb 2010

Bryce Essler of Kelowna is missing in Maui, after going snorkeling while on vacation with his girlfriend.

U.S. Coast Guard and Maui Fire Department crews are searching for a Kelowna man who went missing in the vicinity of the Aston Kaanapali resort on Maui Thursday. Rescue crews are looking for any signs of Bryce Essler, a 20-year-old from Kelowna. Essler was vacationing with his girlfriend, but authorities say he was swimming alone when he disappeared.

Essler's parents left Kelowna for Hawaii on Thursday night.

A rescue helicopter crew from Air Station Barbers Point, a Coast Guard Station Maui boatcrew, and Maui Fire Department personnel are searching offshore near the resort. Witnesses say there are “caution signs” warnings at the beach at the Kaanapali Resort that tell swimmers not to go in the water near the buoys and that if they get caught and pulled out, to swim either right or left and then swim toward shore. The bouys mark the area of the extreme current.

All afternoon and evening there have been rescue boats, wave runners, helicopters and rescue personnel in the water in scuba and snorkel gear

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Overnight search efforts failed to turn up any sign of Bryce Essler, the 20-year-old Kelowna man who disappeared Thursday morning while snorkelling off the coast of Maui.

A U.S. Coast Guard spokesman told Kelowna.com this morning that a helicopter and patrol boat worked throughout the night, but found no sign of Essler.

The spokesman said the search would continued through this evening if necessary. If still unsuccessful, the mission will be re-evaluated at that point.

Essler’s family arrived in Maui on Friday.

Earlier information from the U.S. Coast Guard indicated Essler was snorkelling alone near the resort he was staying at on the northwest coast of Maui. It’s been reported elsewhere that Essler is Kelowna Secondary School graduate who now works at Budget Rent A Car, and was vacationing in Hawaii with his girlfriend.

Meanwhile, a woman who commented on a U.S. Coast Guard news website claimed to be at the same resort as Essler, and indicated there had been red flags place along the beach to warn swimmers about strong currents. She said guests were instructed on how to rescue themselves if they were to be pulled out to sea.

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The Coast Guard has suspended the search for missing snorkeler from Canada.

Bryce Essler, 20, was reported missing Thursday afternoon off Kaanapali, Maui. He was last seen about 100 yards off shore.

The Coast Guardnotified his family and officially suspended its search, pending any developments, at about 6 p.m. this evening.

The search covered about 2,714 square miles and used computer models to factor wind and sea currents to determine the search pattern, the Coast Guard said.

A HH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter, C-130 aircraft, 87-foot patrol boat, a 45-foot response boat, Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft and rescue crews from the Maui Fire Department assisted in the search effort.

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Whether it was a strong Hawaiian riptide, choppy seas or something else, we’ll probably never know what happened to Bryce Essler.

The 20-year-old Kelowna man was vacationing at a resort in Maui when he vanished Thursday morning while snorkelling about 90 metres off shore. Maui search and rescue teams joined the U.S. Coast Guard in the non-stop hunt, which was called off Saturday around 4 p.m. PST.

“We don’t speculate as to what might have happened,” U.S. Coast Guard public affairs specialist petty officer (third class) Anthony Soto told Kelowna.com this morning.

“We just know that that area does tend to get a little bit rough, but we can’t speculate as to what exactly happened.”

While the search was underway, someone commented on a Coast Guard news website that Essler’s resort had placed red flags on the beach to warn swimmers about strong currents, and said guests were taught methods to extricate themselves from outgoing riptides.

But Soto couldn’t speak to that.

“What I can tell you is the Coast Guard does take any calls for help seriously,” he said.

“The Coast Guard in a case like this prides itself on finding people, and suspending any case is a very difficult. It’s a very difficult decision.”

Some 7,000 square kilometres of ocean were scoured using planes, boats and helicopters, and relying on the local knowledge of the Maui Fire Department. The triangle-shaped search area covered most of the water between the islands of Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Kahoolawe.

Meanwhile, tributes to Essler continue to pour in on a Facebook memorial page.

“I’ve never heard a bad thing about you, you were a great guy,” wrote Amy Cannan, daughter of Kelowna-Lake Country MP Ron Cannan.

Ben Fecht, a teacher at KLO Middle School, wrote: “Over the course of a teaching career, thousands of students come through your classroom. You try to remember them all, but over time memories fade and what’s left are those that had an impact on you.

“Bryce was one of those students. I remember Bryce like most have said here – ‘nicest guy ever’, ‘wonderful individual’.”

Another person wrote that a memorial has been planned for this morning on the beachfront at the resort where Essler was staying.

It’s been reported elsewhere that Essler was on vacation with his girlfriend. He graduated from Kelowna Secondary School and was working at Budget Rent A Car in Kelowna.

joe@kelowna.com
250-575-4303

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A memorial for the young man who disappeared last week while snorkelling off the coast of Maui is scheduled for this weekend.

A service will be held Sunday for Bryce Essler, 20, at Kelowna’s Trinity Baptist Church.

Posted on the Facebook page titled In Loving Memory of Bryce Essler, details of the service have been laid out, as well as the request that those in attendance wear “white sunglasses.”

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