Two weeks ago, 57-year-old investment adviser Kenan Knieriem married local entrepreneur Debi Ozawa in what friends called a joining of "two soul mates madly in love with each other." On Saturday, Debi was forced to surrender her husband to unforgiving waters south of Diamond Head following a sudden accident.

A Coast Guard news release issued late that night reported that Knieriem fell overboard from the vessel Ikaika some 13 miles south of Waikiki and that an intensive, daylong search failed to locate him. Two women who had joined Knieriem and his wife on the trip tell a far more horrifying tale.

Interior designer Rosina Ho had recently finished extensive work on the Knieriems’ marina home in Hawaii Kai. Saturday’s fishing trip was a thank-you gesture from the Knieriems. Realtor Amalia Johles, who sold the Knieriems their home, also came along.

Ho said the boat was about 15 minutes out when an alarm sounded, signaling a hit on one of the lines.

"Kenan put the boat in neutral and told me to come down and reel (the fish) in," Ho said. "It was a long line so it was hard to reel in. Then I heard a yell. I looked up and Kenan was in the water."

Knieriem had been attempting to bring the large mahimahi onto the boat with a gaff when he fell. As 4-foot waves crashed around him and a powerful current began to drag him away, Knieriem called for his wife to turn the vessel around.

"It took some time to figure out how to do it," Ho said. "We did a U-turn and came back. The waves were crashing around him. He was upright but his face was white. We found a lifejacket and threw it to him, but he didn’t go for it."

Johles, who had been ill with seasickness, was sleeping on deck when she was roused by the commotion.

"When I woke up, people were screaming," Johles said. "Kenan was in the water about 100 yards away from the boat. The current had swept him away really quickly. … He was bobbing in the water, and it looked like he had had a stroke or a seizure or something because he wasn’t trying to swim or anything, just bobbing up and down."

Johles jumped into the sea, followed by Debi.

"Everything happened so quickly, and we were just trying to stay calm and do our best," Johles said. "Maybe if we had a surfboard or emergency equipment, but there wasn’t anything. I think we did the best we could, but it was just too much."

Johles managed to bring Knieriem close to the boat, but she and Debi Knieriem struggled to keep his unresponsive body from sinking.

Exhausted and unable to continue fighting the ocean, Johles reluctantly returned to the boat. Johles said Debi Knieriem remained in the water, holding her motionless husband, until she, too, was forced to come aboard.

"Debi held on to him a few minutes longer, but he was gone," Johles said. "He died in her arms. If she had stayed in the water, she would have drowned, too."

A call to Knieriem’s home on Sunday was answered by someone identifying himself as Knieriem’s stepson. He said the family had no comment regarding the incident, adding simply, "We’re really grieving."

Knieriem has a son and a daughter from his first marriage. Johles said Debi Knieriem also has four children.

Knieriem grew up in West Long Branch, N.J., and attended the Naval Academy, where he was a four-year letter winner in soccer. One of his sons, also named Kenan, also played soccer for the school after a standout athletic career at Punahou.

According to a profile on the Merrill Lynch website, Knieriem worked for the company for 28 years, serving as senior vice president for investments and manager of the Honolulu office.

Johles said that as the boat headed out Saturday, Knieriem talked about the beauty of the ocean and his love for his new wife.

"It’s a tragedy, but at least he left surrounded by what he loved," said Johles, who had a small role in the HBO series "The Sopranos."