A Fijian rugby player tragically drowned in the Russian River in Santa Rosa, California last week.
Twenty-eight-year-old Nasoni “Toni” Tuitoga and his friends sought relief from the heat by heading to the Russian River on Wednesday for a swim. However, the outing took a dreadful turn when Tuitoga was pulled under by a whirlpool and did not resurface.
After a two-day search, Tuitoga’s body was recovered on Friday afternoon. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office identified him on Sunday.
Tuitoga was a member of the Santa Rosa Rugby Club, which paid homage to him in a social media post, stating, “It’s a sad day in our rugby community. We lost one of our players this week, Tony (Nasoni Tuitoga Jr) and our team won’t be the same without his energy. Our condolences and prayers go out to his family and loved ones.”
Speaking to KTVU FOX 2 TV News, his mother, Lavenia Cavora Tuinaceva Tuitoga, expressed her grief, saying, “I’m going to miss him so much, his smile.”
Friend Joe Quai Hoi was present and recounted the harrowing experience of seeing Tuitoga jump into the water. “The crazy part was we were like yelling out at him when we saw him swimming around in circles like, ‘Hey, you OK?’ and he never really said anything back until he disappeared under the water,” Quai Hoi recalled.
Tuitoga’s mother mentioned that his friends attempted to rescue him but were unsuccessful. “They (search and rescue) said when they found him, he was like 30–40 feet away from where everyone said he disappeared,” Quai Hoi added.
Lavenia Tuitoga described the painful moment an officer came to her door to deliver the news. “They put his cell phone on the table, and then I just started crying. I knew,” she said, adding, “I just keep on asking God to give us peace in our hearts.”
The Tuitoga family is originally from Naivicula, Wainibuka in Tailevu.