Bodies of Two Italian Divers Recovered from Maldives Cave

Specialist Finnish divers recovered the bodies of two Italian divers from an underwater cave in the Maldives on Tuesday. The bodies were brought to the surface after a two-hour operation and are being taken to the capital Male for identification. " The cave reaches depths of up to 60 meters, with the entrance at 47 meters.

A Maldivian government spokesperson said the bodies were retrieved from the third chamber by the Finnish team. The coastguard took over the operation once the bodies reached a depth of 30 meters. The mission to recover the remaining two bodies will resume on Wednesday.

Officials expressed hope that the bodies could be retrieved the same day. The recovery has been complicated by the cave's depth, limited space, and poor visibility. Weather conditions at the time of the original dive were described as rough, with a yellow warning issued for passenger boats and fishermen.

Background on the Accident The accident occurred last Thursday near Vaavu atoll.

A Maldivian rescue diver died during the search on Saturday. The four missing divers were found by Finnish specialists on Monday. The team had a permit to dive to 50 meters but did not mention the cave in their proposal. The University of Genoa stated that the dive was conducted in a personal capacity and not as part of authorized research.

The university had suspended scientific dive authorizations in March 2024. " — Mohamed Hossain Shareef, Maldivian government spokesperson, via BBC News >"The requests submitted to the Maldivian authorities...