Five Italian divers have tragically lost their lives 160 feet underwater while scuba diving in the Maldives. The group was exploring caves around Vaavu Atoll on Thursday morning when the tragedy happened.
Authorities were alerted that the group of divers disappeared at around 1.45 p.m. local time, with an emergency search operation taking place immediately.
What made the tragedy even more heartbreaking was the loss of another life, that of rescue diver Sergeant Major Mohamed Mahudhee, who passed away while helping with recovery operations. The five Italian divers were later identified as University of Genoa marine biology professor Monica Montefalcone, her 20-year-old daughter Giorgia Sommacal, Muriel Oddenino, Gianluca Benedetti, and Federico Gualtieri.
Italy’s foreign ministry said in a statement: “The divers are reported to have died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres [164 feet].”
While how the tragedy unfolded remains a mystery, the husband of professor Monica Montefalcone and the father of Giorgia, has spoken out and said he also has questions about how his wife and daughter lost their lives.
While many criticised the decision of the divers to dive that deep, Montefalcone’s husband, Carlo Sommaca, told Italian newspaper La Repubblica that his wife “would never have put the life of our daughter or other kids at risk.”
Speaking to The Times, he added: “My only certainty is that my wife is one of the best scuba divers on the face of the earth.”
In a separate third interview with the Associated Press, Sommaca stated: “Something must have happened.”
Pulmonologist Claudio Micheletto told Italian news agency Adnkronos: “It’s likely that something went wrong with the tanks.”
He continued: “Death from oxygen toxicity, or hyperoxia, is one of the most dramatic deaths that can occur during a dive — a horrible end.”
Montefalcone was far from an inexperienced diver. She had completed more than 5,000 dives throughout her life and was recognized by World Wide Fund for Nature as one of the leading specialists on Mediterranean Posidonia ecosystems.
Her research focused largely on seagrass restoration, protecting coastal environments, and studying how climate change affects marine biodiversity.
Officials said the area where the group had been diving, roughly 60 miles south of Malé, was experiencing rough and unpredictable weather conditions, with winds reportedly reaching up to 30 mph at the time.
The dangerous seas also forced recovery operations to be paused on Friday, although authorities expected the search to resume once conditions improved on Saturday.
Reports said another 20 passengers had traveled out to sea with the five victims, but they ultimately chose not to enter the water — a decision that may have saved their lives.
Officials from Italy’s foreign ministry said in a statement: “Due to adverse weather conditions, it is not yet clear whether they will be able to reach the vessel in distress, which has in the meantime moved in search of a safe harbor.
“The vessel is awaiting an improvement in weather conditions in order to return to Malé.”
Please SHARE this article with your family and friends on Facebook.
Bored Daddy
Love and Peace
