Divers in the Maldives resumed searching for four Italian scuba divers who drowned while exploring a deep underwater cave in Vaavu Atoll. Rough weather had temporarily suspended the high-risk recovery operation, and the mission restarted after conditions improved. Eight divers worked in pairs during the resumed search, with plans to continue the effort on Saturday. Five Italians died in the accident, and one body was found near the mouth of a cave shortly after the incident. Rescuers believe the remaining four divers are inside the cave, which contains three large chambers connected by narrow passages. Teams had explored two chambers but were blocked from reaching the third. Italy’s foreign minister said the government will do everything possible to recover the bodies, and investigations continue into the unknown causes of death.
"Divers in the Maldives have resumed their search for the bodies of four Italian scuba divers who drowned while exploring a deep underwater cave. Due to rough weather on Friday, Maldivian authorities had temporarily suspended the high-risk operation to recover the bodies of the divers who, according to Italy's foreign ministry, had apparently died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres (164ft). Mohamed Hussain Shareef, the Maldives presidential spokesperson, said eight divers took part in Friday's search, working in pairs, with a plan to continue the mission on Saturday."
"In total, five Italians died in the scuba diving accident in Vaavu Atoll in the Indian Ocean archipelago on Thursday, Italy's foreign ministry said. The body of the fifth diver was found near the mouth of a cave shortly afterwards, and rescuers believe the remaining four divers are inside the same cave, which is divided into three large chambers connected by narrow passages. Recovery teams had already explored two of the three chambers, but were hampered in their efforts to explore the third chamber."
"The search resumed on Saturday, with two Italians a deep-sea rescue expert and a cave diving expert expected to join the recovery effort. Italy's foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, said the Italian government will do everything possible to recover the bodies of our compatriots. The deceased have been identified as Monica Montefalcone, an associate ecology professor at the University of Genoa, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, marine biologist Federico Gualtieri, researcher Muriel Oddenino and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti, whose body has been recovered."
"The causes of their deaths is unknown and is being investigated. Officials said the incident was the worst single diving accident in the Maldives, which has 1,192 tiny coral islands scattered across hundreds of miles of the Indian Ocean. The University of Genoa said Montefalcone and Oddenino were on an official scientific mission t"
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