The diving tragedy in Maldives has added a new victim. A diver from the Maldives National Defence Force died this Saturday while participating in the recovery efforts of the bodies of four Italians trapped in an underwater cave in the Vaavu atoll, where five divers died on Thursday during a high-depth dive. Associated Press identifies the soldier as Mohamed Mahudhee and states that he died from decompression sickness during the search operation.
The initial accident occurred on Thursday, May 14, when five Italians failed to return to the surface after a dive in an underwater cave located about 50 meters deep. So far, only one of the bodies has been recovered, that of instructor Gianluca Benedetti, while the other four remain in an area of difficult access.
The operation has become an extremely high-risk intervention. The remaining bodies are believed to be in a cavern located about 60 meters deep, in a narrow environment, with complicated visibility and technical demands far superior to a conventional recreational dive.
A sixth victim in the Maldives tragedy
The death of the Maldivian soldier brings the number of fatalities linked to this accident to six: the five Italian divers and the member of the rescue team participating in the recovery of the bodies.
According to information released by international media, the soldier felt unwell during the operation and was transferred in critical condition, but ultimately died. AP attributes the death to a case of decompression sickness, one of the major risks in deep dives if ascent or pressure exposure is not managed correctly.
The death of the rescuer shows how dangerous the intervention is. It is no longer just about locating the bodies, but about doing so without putting more divers at risk in a deep, narrow, and technically very demanding cave.
What happened to the five Italian divers
The five Italian deceased were part of an expedition that departed from the ship Duke of York. They entered an underwater cave in the Vaavu atoll and failed to return to the surface. The victims are Monica Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, Muriel Oddenino, Federico Gualtieri, and instructor Gianluca Benedetti.
The only body recovered for the moment is Benedetti's. According to information published in Italy, his bottle was empty when he was located, which has reinforced the hypothesis that the group may have become trapped, blocked, or disoriented within the cave system until they ran out of available gas.
Authorities have not yet closed the cause of the accident. Several hypotheses are on the table: loss of orientation, difficulty exiting the cave, excessive gas consumption, a technical problem with the equipment, or a chain of incidents in an environment with no direct exit to the surface.