World5 min(s) read
Published 15:51 15 May 2026 GMT
There was a survivor who was on the fateful expedition in the Maldives, which resulted in the deaths of five divers who looked to explore caves in the South Asian nation.
The sixth diver did not die as she didn't enter the water, reports have revealed.
The rest of her diving companions, who were Italian like her, never resurfaced after going into the water and were subsequently declared dead.
Just one body has been found so far, located in caves 200ft below the surface of the Indian Ocean.
Police are currently investigating the situation following their deaths, as the adventurous tourists were exploring caves around Vaavu at the time of the tragic accident on Thursday morning (May 14).
Authorities arrived at the scene shortly after being told of the group's disappearance, at around 1.45pm local time.
The urgent search operation is currently ongoing.
The surviving diver, revealed to be a student at the University of Genoa, stayed on board the yacht while other researchers made their way into the water.
All five of her compatriots fatally descended to the sea floor in Vaavu Atoll, according to Italian publication La Repubblica.
Her decision to stay on board the vessel meant that she survived, though it is still unknown why she chose not to dive.
She is now heading back to Italy to be reunited with her family.
It was reported that another 20 Italians were aboard the 'luxury' Duke of York yacht, though it is not clear what their role in the expedition was.
After disappearing near Alimatha, one of the area's most popular diving spots, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) deployed aircraft and speedboats as part of a search party.
A statement from the force read: "One body has been found among five divers who went diving in Vaavu Atoll,
"The body was found inside a cave. It is believed that the remaining four divers are also inside the same cave, which extends to a depth of about 60 metres (200 feet)."
The divers consisted of a University of Genoa research team and another tourist.
Two of the victims were a university ecology professor, Monica Montefalcone, and her 20-year-old daughter Giorgia Sommacal.
The three other divers, two of whom were researchers, have been named as Muriel Oddenino of Turin, Gianluca Benedetti of Padua, and Federico Gualtieri of the northern town of Borgomanero.
Montefalcone was a respected marine biologist and TV personality, while also being a professor of Tropical Marine Ecology and Underwater Science at the University of Genoa.
Montefalcone's husband, Carlo Sommacal, said in a statement that his wife is an "expert" diver and that she is "never reckless," leaving him devastated.
He claimed: "Monica would never have put the lives of her daughter and the other children at risk through recklessness. Something happened down there."
Reports say it was the crew of the Duke of York yacht, a foreign-operated live-aboard diving vessel, that reported the group missing after they failed to surface.
According to the Maldives' military, the other four divers were believed to be in the same cave where they uncovered one of the bodies.
They explained that rescue divers with special equipment had been sent to the area, due to the high-risk nature of the search operation.
Maldivian authorities reported that the weather on Thursday was rough in the area, around 100km (62 miles) south of the capital Malé.
They are yet to rule out several scenarios.
A yellow warning was issued for passenger boats and fishermen as strong winds of around 30mph stirred the sea.
The incident is believed to be the worst single diving accident in the tiny Indian Ocean nation, a popular tourist destination because of its string of coral islands.
Italy‘s foreign ministry said, “Following an accident during a scuba dive, five Italians died in the Vaavu atoll, in the Maldives.”
It added that the five died “while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 meters”.
While the official causes of death have not been reported, the Italian media claim they could have been caused by oxygen toxicity.
This is the primary safety concern for divers and is responsible for most sudden diving fatalities, as this occurs during short exposures to very high partial pressures of oxygen.
It usually occurs at depths greater than 66 meters using air, or shallower when using enriched air nitrox, the latter of which is more commonly used by divers.
