The Ralstons meet on the water with an RCMP dingy after locating the body of Samen Pirzadeh-Tabaei-Zavareh, 34, of North Vancouver on Sunday. (Diana Anderson)
Gene Ralston admits he doesn’t sleep well when one of the rescue missions he’s become famous for isn’t successful.
Ralston and his wife Sandy were hired in late June to come to Osoyoos by the family of a missing North Vancouver man who was reported missing in Osoyoos Lake after being involved in a jet-ski accident the afternoon of June 28.
After searching unsuccessfully for more than a week, the Ralston’s decided to return to their home in Idaho and spent the past several weeks being involved in other recovery missions.
They returned to Osoyoos last week and with the assistance of some canine friends and other experts, they successfully recovered the body of the missing man this past Sunday afternoon.
On Tuesday, the B.C. Coroner’s Office confirmed the identity of the man who drowned seven weeks ago as Samen Pirzadeh-Tabaei-Zavareh, 34.
He was reported missing after driving a jet-ski with a female passenger on board in the late afternoon of June 28. The watercraft capsized, the passenger was rescued by a passing boat, but the driver was not found.
Gene and Sandy Ralston have gained international recognition over the past 20 years for their commitment and dedication to recovering the bodies of drowning victims.
Using sophisticated sonar equipment, the Ralstons have helped recover more than 100 bodies across North America and around the world.
After being unsuccessful during their first trip to Osoyoos seven weeks ago, Gene Ralston said he and his wife, along with good friend and deckhand John Zeman, knew they would be returning to take another attempt at finding the missing man.
“I have a tough time sleeping at night when I know a body we’re looking for is down there,” said Gene. “I knew in my gut that we were close to finding the body during our first visit, but we weren’t successful. We (his wife and Zeman) agreed that we would be coming back because we had to find this body.”
As they have done in the past, the Ralston’s sought out and accepted the assistance of two renowned dog handlers from the United States who have helped them in numerous other recovery missions.
Susan Dobson from California and Robin Latimer from Oregon agreed to make the trip to Osoyoos to assist them this time around, said Gene.
They own specially-trained dogs with special abilities to detect objects in deep water, he said.
With the assistance of Osoyoos RCMP officers, the dogs accompanied the Ralston’s last Friday as they resumed their search for the missing man.
They also used “mathematical equations” provided by another American expert named Colleen Keller who specializes in finding missing aircraft calculating drift patterns underwater to resume their search Sunday morning.
When they passed a section on the northeast side of Osoyoos Lake, Latimer’s dog “gave some alerts” that convinced him the body might be in this area, he said.
This area was not a long way from where the female passenger had been rescued back on June 28, he said.
At this point, they decided to start conducting another “east to west grid search” of the area and at 10 a.m. Sunday morning, their sonar picked up an image they were convinced was a human body, said Gene.
“The very first image was taken at a range of about 50 metres … and we had high hopes,” he said. “We closed the sonar to within 20 metres and we knew we had finally found him.”
After such an arduous search, it’s very rewarding to accomplish the gruesome mission of finding the deceased, he said.
“There’s a definite hint of sadness, but there’s also a great sense of relief because this is what the family hired us to do,” he said.
The body was found in 73 feet of water about 1,700 feet from the location of the reported jet-ski accident, he said.
Even though family members appreciate their hard work to find the body of loved ones, it’s always extremely emotional when a body is pulled to shore, he said.
“The families are always very appreciative and extremely relieved, but it’s like they’re reliving the death all over again when they finally realize the body has been found,” he said. “Until there’s an actual body, it’s human nature for loved ones to hold out hope they might be found alive. It’s a very common defence mechanism.”
The body was turned over to experienced RCMP diver John Fleming, who was on vacation in Osoyoos, but took the time and effort to assist the family once the body was recovered, he said.
The Ralston’s helped recover two more drowning victims between their trips to Osoyoos and were planning for their next recovery mission next week in Redfish Lake in Stanley, Idaho, where a man was reported missing two weeks ago.
Zeman said it’s a pleasure to watch the Ralston’s at work and be part of a small team that helps families during very difficult times.
“These two just don’t give up and care about what they do,” he said. “Besides that, they’re very good people and I like helping them out.”
The Ralston’s and Zeman thanked Osoyoos resident Gary Grelish and his wife for allowing them to stay on their property with their large motorhome during their two visits to Osoyoos.
“Their hospitality and friendship was greatly appreciated,” said Gene.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
Sandy and Gene Ralston made the long return trip from Idaho to Osoyoos Lake last week to continue the search for a North Vancouver man missing after a boat accident on Osoyoos Lake in late June. The Ralsons, assisted by two American dog handlers, recovered the body of the missing man this past Sunday morning. (Keith Lacey photo)
