World3 min(s) read
Published 15:22 16 May 2026 GMT
A Maldivian Coast Guard diver has tragically died while helping recover the bodies of five Italian divers killed during a cave expedition in the Maldives.
Sergeant Major Mohammed Mahdi lost his life on Saturday during the third day of search operations in Vaavu Atoll. He was part of an eight-person recovery team searching underwater cave systems where the Italian group disappeared earlier this week.
According to Maldivian Presidential Spokesman Mohammed Hussain Shareef, Mahdi died from “underwater decompression sickness” after reportedly falling ill during the mission and being rushed to hospital.
The Maldivian military paid tribute to the diver in a statement shared on X, writing: “His courage, sacrifice, and service to the nation will always be remembered. Our deepest condolences to his family and colleagues.”
The tragedy highlights the dangerous conditions rescuers are facing as they continue searching the deep underwater caves.
The Italian team vanished on Thursday morning after descending into caves believed to be around 200 feet underwater. They failed to resurface, sparking a major rescue and recovery effort.
Authorities have since suspended the license of the luxury yacht Duke of York, which the divers used as their launch vessel.
People onboard the yacht claimed they raised the alarm around midday after noticing the divers had not resurfaced, but alleged that rescue crews did not arrive until almost three hours later.
Four of the missing divers were connected to the University of Genoa and included respected marine biology professor Monica Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, researcher Muriel Oddenino, and marine biologist Federico Gualtieri.
The fifth diver was experienced instructor and boat captain Gianluca Benedetti. His body was discovered Thursday evening alongside an empty oxygen tank.
Carlo Sommacal, Montefalcone's husband and Giorgia's father, revealed that his wife usually carried a GoPro camera on her dives, which could help piece together the circumstances of the tragedy.
Speaking to Italian news outlet La Repubblica, Sommacal said: "Monica usually had a GoPro when she went diving.
"I don't know if she had one the other day. If they find it, maybe from there we can understand what happened."
He added: "My wife [was] among the best divers on earth. She would never have put our daughter's life or that of others at risk... something must have happened down there.
"Maybe one of them had trouble, maybe the oxygen tanks, I have no idea."
Italy’s foreign ministry confirmed the recovery operation had resumed after bad weather forced crews to temporarily stop searching.
“Eight Maldivian divers are currently taking turns in the search operations,” the ministry said. “The first two divers have already gone underwater to locate and precisely mark the entrance to the series of caves where the Italian divers went missing.”
It added: “Six more divers will subsequently dive, in various shifts, to try to locate the bodies and bring them to the surface.”
Roughly 20 other people remained aboard the Duke of York during the expedition, including university students, researchers and professors.
One witness recalled the terrifying moment they realised something had gone wrong: “We didn’t see them resurfacing. No balloon opened. That’s when we realized something was wrong and immediately raised the alarm.”
Another person explained why rescue efforts may have taken so long, saying: “The Maldives are huge, the atolls are very distant from each other, and rescuers arrive here by sea. It can take hours.”
As investigators work to determine what happened, loved ones of the missing divers have begun speaking publicly about the tragedy.
