Maui College students Edelene Parilla, 18, and Emmanuel Tabbay, 19, were part of a tightknit group of friends who sought outdoor fun.
"They loved adventure," said Lawrence Pascua, a Filipino folk dance instructor who had the pair in his group La Galeria since 2011. "They loved discovering mountains, going up hiking all the time, to the beach all the time, finding new places to jump off of."
In addition to dance and culture, Pascua tried to keep it fun for students by taking them to visit places like Haleakala and Hana. It also helped solidify the friendship between members, he said, adding Parilla and Tabbay’s strong "friendship was molded by the group."
The depth of that friendship was shown Monday when Tabbay jumped into the ocean to try to save Parilla, who was swept off the rocky coastline near Honokohau Bay by a wave at a place known as Chutes and Ladders.
They died at the scene.
"Emman was very brave," Pascua said, adding that he was smart and always spoke the truth.
They were "very, very good friends, like brother and sister," Pascua said, adding they knew each other before they joined La Galeria.
Parilla, a freshman, and Tabbay, a sophomore, attended the University of Hawaii Maui College.
Tabbay was enrolled in the culinary program there and had worked for Roy’s restaurant and was last working at Ruby Tuesday, Pascua said.
"He was just a sophomore, but he was very passionate about what he did," he said.
Parilla wasn’t sure what she would do in college, but showed a talent for art, he said.
"She had a dream of wanting to become a pilot, to fly," Pascua said.
Pascua said the dance school was a place to instill in the students to remember where they came from and to honor their culture.
Tabbay and Parilla emigrated from the Philippines and were fluent in Tagalog, Ilocano and English, and had pride in their culture.
"After high school they drifted away from the dance group, although I’ve always considered them members," Pascua said. "With age they became more independent. They still go out and have fun and discover different places, fun experiences, clean experiences."
But Pascua said the tragedy has caused him to reassess the need to warn young people about the ocean and how to handle dangerous situations.
"I never expected anything like this would happen," he said.
The area is called Chutes and Ladders, but it’s no game when the surf is up.
The remote coastal pool on Maui’s rocky and rugged northwest coast is at the bottom of a 40-foot cliff, and that’s where Parilla and Tabbay ran into trouble.
Friends who were with the two near Honokohau Bay on Monday told authorities that a rogue wave slammed into Parilla and swept her into the ocean, prompting Tabbay to jump in to try to save her.
One of the friends was able to find someone to call for emergency assistance. But by the time rescue personnel responded, both had drowned, their lifeless bodies plucked from the ocean.
Tide pools carved into the coastal rocks in Hawaii are attractive shoreline features to many but also are notorious for large surf and rogue waves. Scores of visitors have lost their lives.
Despite the potential for danger, remote location and no-trespassing signs, Chutes and Ladders appears to be growing in popularity, thanks in part to social media. The place is documented online in at least 15 videos, and there are several blog descriptions as well.
"This hike is not for the faint of heart or heights," says one YouTube description.
"The hike was intense, but the experience was well worth it!" says another.
A friend told Cory Yap of Oahu about Chutes and Ladders last year, and he visited the place with friends about a year ago. He said the trail to the cliff is not easy to find, but many locals know where it is.
Yap said there are at least two ways to get into trouble there: the perilous climb down and rogue waves.
A rope is tied above and extends to the bottom, but the descent is still quite precarious, he said. "It’s a scramble."
Yap said he checked the surf before visiting last year, so he was reasonably assured the pools would be safe.
Over the years an increasing number of tourists and locals have been venturing to Maui’s remote northwest coast, lured by dramatic ocean vistas, the Nakalele Blowhole and a small but growing number of visitor attractions.
A couple of miles to the east of Chutes and Ladders are the more accessible Olivine Pools, a group of tide pools set in a lava shelf. These pools are popular but are notorious for drownings and injuries when large waves overwhelm the pools.
