The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported this Monday, 18, that rescue teams located the bodies of four missing Italian divers in an underwater cave in Vaavu atoll, in the Maldives.
The searches resumed this Monday after being interrupted due to the death of a Maldivian soldier who was taking part in the rescue operation. According to the local government, the member of the Maldives National Defense Force died after suffering complications related to decompression.
According to the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the missing victims “apparently died while trying to explore caves at a depth of 50 meters”, on Thursday, 14. The limit allowed for recreational diving in the Maldives is 30 meters.
Three Finnish divers specializing in deep diving and cave exploration arrived in the country on Sunday to assist in the operation and draw up a new search plan. According to local authorities, they participated in the work alongside the police and the Maldivian Armed Forces.
It is not yet clear whether the teams viewed the bodies directly during the dive or whether they were identified using underwater drones.
Ahmed Shaam, spokesman for the Maldives government, said search teams will now develop a plan to bring the bodies to the surface. The causes of the deaths remain under investigation.
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According to the University of Genoa, the victims included the associate professor of Ecology at the Department of Earth, Environmental and Life Sciences, Monica Montefalcone, her daughter, Giorgia Sommacal, who studied Biomedical Engineering, and researchers Muriel Oddenino and Federico Gualtieri.
The body of a fifth diver had already been recovered on Thursday, authorities said.
