A search yesterday failed to find 21-year-old Victor Edward Boraman, the son of Dixie and Ted Boraman, who brought him to New Zealand from Russia as an orphan when he was 6 years old.
On Sunday night, the Westpac Rescue Helicopter crew from Christchurch nearly rescued Mr Boraman, but as they came close, he was hit by a large wave and dragged under the water. He did not resurface.
No trace has been found of him since then.
Late yesterday afternoon Mrs Boraman told the Otago Daily Times the family did not expect him to be found alive.
But the family still hopes to get him back from the sea.
Mr Boraman lived with his parents at Papakaio and was educated at Papakaio School and Waitaki Boys' High School.
He worked on dairy farms, followed in his father's footsteps and worked on fishing trawlers offshore with Sanfords. About six months ago he returned to dairying and had been on a farm at Rakaia.
He was new to whitebaiting, having bought a net about 10 days ago, and had been out just a couple of times.
Mrs Boraman on Sunday said that he was "out there looking" with his net or was on the shore with two friends.
"His dog took off and got into the lagoon so his mates went and grabbed the dog. When they turned around a wave had come in behind Victor and knocked him off his feet," she said.
He was out in the sea for about three-quarters of an hour and had "done everything right", including removing his waders so he could float.
The rescue helicopter arrived and was directed by spotters on shore to where Mr Boraman was.
Mrs Boraman said the helicopter crew "very nearly had him out", but then the wave hit him and he disappeared.
"He didn't have a life jacket on. He would have survived if he had a life jacket.
"That's the message we would like to get across to whitebaiters and anyone else on water - even if you're not in the surf but on the land ... "
Mr Boraman was single but had a "special girl" in his life he was "keeping quiet" about, "but we knew all about her". The family had met her when they went to Rakaia for the search.
"He was a unique lad, made everyone smile and touched everyone's hearts. He was a bit of a character," Mrs Boraman said.
Search and rescue disaster victim identification co-ordinator Sergeant Ryan O'Rourke, of Canterbury, said an air search was conducted along the coastline yesterday while LandSAR volunteers from Rakaia and Ellesmere scoured the shoreline using quad bikes, joined by the Coastguard Canterbury Air Patrol at low tide late yesterday.
On Sunday, weather and sea conditions were very poor at the time, and made searching then rather difficult.
The operation would continue with further shoreline searches today, he said.
