Five Italians died in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives after entering the water on Thursday morning and failing to resurface later in the day. The foreign ministry in Rome said the divers are believed to have died while trying to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres, or 164ft, in Vaavu Atoll.
The Maldives' military said one body had been found in a cave about 60 metres underwater and that the other four divers were believed to be in the same cave. Divers with special equipment were sent to the area, where the search operation was described as very high risk.
The crew of the diving vessel reported the group missing after they did not return to the surface. Police said the weather was rough in the area about 100km, or 62 miles, south of Malé, and a yellow warning had been issued for passenger boats and fishermen. The incident is believed to be the worst single diving accident in the tiny Indian Ocean nation.
The University of Genoa said the victims included a marine biology professor, her daughter and two young researchers, and expressed its deepest condolences to the victims. The university did not release further details, but the loss adds a sharp human edge to a disaster that unfolded in one of the world’s most heavily visited island chains.
The Maldives is a popular tourist destination because of its string of coral islands, and diving and snorkelling accidents there are relatively rare. Even so, the country has seen deadly incidents before: in 2024, a Japanese lawmaker died while snorkelling in Lhaviyani Atoll, and last December an experienced British female diver drowned in a scuba incident off the island resort of Ellaidhoo; her husband died five days later after falling ill. For the families now waiting for answers in Vaavu Atoll, the immediate question is not whether the Maldives remains safe in general, but how a routine dive became a recovery operation that rescuers themselves called exceptionally dangerous.
