Five tourists tragically die in 160ft cave diving accident including mum and daughter
Five scuba divers from Italy have died in a cave diving accident in the Maldives in what is believed to be the country's deadliest single diving tragedy.
The group were exploring underwater caves at popular diving spots near Vaavu Atoll, around 100km south of the capital, Malé, before they vanished.
Following an urgent search operation, the five bodies were discovered and have been identified as University of Genoa ecology professor Monica Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, research fellow Muriel Oddenino, marine biology graduate Federico Gualtieri, and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti.
"The divers are believed to have died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres (164ft)," the foreign ministry in Rome has said.
Police noted that the weather was rough in the area with a yellow warning in place for passenger boats and fishermen.
On Thursday (14 May) afternoon, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) said in a statement that 'one body has been found among five divers who went diving in Vaavu Atoll'.
"The body was found inside a cave. It is believed that the remaining four divers are also inside the same cave, which extends to a depth of about 60 metres (65 yards)," the MNDF said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka have said they have been 'contacting the victims' families to provide any necessary consular assistance'.
In a statement posted on X, the University of Genoa expressed its 'deepest condolences'.
Maurizio Uras, an Italian dive master interviewed by AGI, said that the depth is always an issue when deep sea diving.
“At certain depths, oxygen becomes toxic if the gas mixture is not properly calibrated,” he explained.
Investigations remain ongoing.
Topics: News, World News
Anish Vij