University of Genoa
Five Italians have died in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives, the Foreign Ministry in Rome announced.
“The divers are believed to have died while trying to explore caves at a depth of 50 meters (164 feet),” the ministry said, adding that this happened in Vaavu Atoll.
Four of the divers were part of a team from the University of Genoa, including ecology professor Monica Montefalcone, her daughter and two researchers.
The Maldives military said a body was found in a cave about 60 meters underwater, and that the other four divers were also believed to be there.
Divers equipped with special equipment were sent to the scene, qualifying a search operation as very high risk.
It is likely the worst diving accident in the small Indian Ocean country, a popular tourist destination due to its string of coral islands.
The five Italians entered the water on Thursday morning, local media report.
The crew of the dive boat they were traveling on reported them missing when they subsequently failed to resurface.
Police said the weather was bad in the area, about 100 km south of the capital Malé. A yellow warning has been issued for passenger boats and fishermen.
The University of Genoa later named the victims Montefalcone, his daughter Giorgia Sommacal, also a student, researcher Muriel Oddenino and marine biology graduate Federico Gualtieri.
The fifth victim was named as the boat’s operations manager and diving instructor, Gianluca Benedetti.
In a statement on X, the university expressed its “deepest condolences” to the victims.
Diving and snorkeling accidents are relatively rare in the Maldives, although several deaths have been reported in recent years.
In 2024, a Japanese lawmaker died while snorkeling in Lhaviyani Atoll.
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