Bodies of Missing Italian Divers Found in Maldives Cave

Italy’s Foreign Ministry announced on Monday that the bodies of four Italian divers were found inside an underwater cave in a Maldivian atoll. The search efforts resumed after stopping due to the tragic death of a local military diver during a dangerous recovery mission.

The divers had been exploring a cave system at a depth of approximately 50 meters in the Vaavu Atoll last Thursday. This depth exceeds the Maldives’ recreational diving limit of 30 meters. According to the Foreign Ministry, five Italian divers are believed to have perished in the incident.

Previously, the body of another Italian, identified as a diving instructor, was discovered outside the cave. To aid the search, three Finnish divers, experts in deep and cave diving, arrived in the country on Sunday. They developed a new strategy for locating the remaining four bodies within the cave system.

A collaborative search effort on Monday, involving the Finnish divers, Maldives police, and military personnel, succeeded in locating the bodies. Government spokesman Ahmed Shaam stated it was not immediately clear if the divers went underwater to see the bodies or identified them through underwater drone footage.

The team is currently working on a plan to recover the bodies and bring them to the surface. Meanwhile, Maldives presidential spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef explained that the search was initially halted following the death of Mohamed Mahudhee, a member of the Maldivian National Defense Force. He succumbed to underwater decompression sickness after being hospitalized in the capital.

Ongoing rough weather conditions have frequently hindered rescue operations. Initial teams had managed to dive, identify, and mark the cave’s entrance where the Italian divers disappeared. The cause of their deaths is still being investigated.