Bodies of 4 missing Italian divers found in undersea Maldives cave

The bodies of four Italians who drowned in the Maldives’ worst diving disaster were found in an underwater cave on May 18, Maldivian and Italian officials said, after an international recovery effort.

The bodies were found four days after a group of five Italians failed to return from a dive in the Indian Ocean tourist destination on May 14, but have not yet been recovered.

Another body was found on May 14, while a Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF) rescuer died from decompression-related complications after surfacing during the search on May 16.

The search was suspended after the death of MNDF diver Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhy but resumed on May 18 with assistance from Italy, Britain and Australia.

Three Finnish experts from the Divers Alert Network, an international dive safety group, were also involved.

“The bodies of four missing divers have been located inside the Vaavu Atoll cave on a joint search-and-recovery operation,” the MNDF said in statement.

The foreign ministry in Rome also confirmed that the bodies of the four missing Italians had been located.

The MNDF saying that further dives will be “carried out in the coming days to recover the bodies”.

Chief Government Spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef told AFP that the four bodies were found in a cave that was much bigger and deeper than first thought.

“They were all found pretty much together in the third segment of the cave, which is bigger than what we initially thought,” Mr Shareef said.

“The plan is to recover two of the bodies tomorrow and the other two possibly the day after,” he said.

The cave was at a depth of about 60m. Tourists visiting the upmarket holiday destination are allowed to dive to a maximum depth of 30m.

Italy’s University of Genoa said the victims included a marine biology professor, her daughter, and two young researchers.

The Maldives has suspended the operating licence of the luxury vessel from which the Italians had been diving and launched an investigation to determine whether safety regulations had been breached.

Tourism is a key source of revenue for the low-lying Maldives, a nation of 1,192 small coral islands and atolls scattered some 800km across the equator in the Indian Ocean.

Its pristine beaches, clear turquoise waters and coral reefs attract divers and snorkellers from around the world, who often stay at secluded resorts or on live-aboard dive boats.

Several fatalities have been reported in recent years, but diving and water sports-related accidents remain relatively rare. AFP