A rescue diver has died while searching for the bodies of four Italians who died in a scuba-diving accident in the Maldives. Staff Sgt Mohamed Mahdhee was taken to hospital in critical condition and later succumbed to his injuries, a government spokesman told the BBC on Saturday.
Five Italians died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of around 50m (164ft) on Thursday. So far, the body of one of them is thought to have been recovered, in a cave at a depth of around 60m (197ft).
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.
Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu travelled to Vaavu Atoll on Saturday to observe the search operations. Eight rescue divers went into the water today. When they surfaced, they realised Mr Mahdhee didn't come up, said government spokesman Mohamed Hossain Shareef.
The other divers immediately went into the water again and found Mahdhee had blacked out. The Maldives military has described the operation as very high risk, with unfavourable weather conditions.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani sent condolences, expressing solidarity: These days of grief for Italy are compounded by the news that one of your brave soldiers... died while attempting to dive to reach the bodies of our fellow Italians. Four of the Italian divers were part of a University of Genoa team, including professor of ecology Monica Montefalcone, her daughter, and two researchers. The fifth was a boat operations manager and diving instructor.
The five entered the water at Vaavu Atoll on Thursday morning, and local media said they were reported missing when they failed to resurface later on. Police reported that the weather was rough in the area, which is about 100km (62 miles) south of the capital, Male.
Five Italians died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of around 50m (164ft) on Thursday. So far, the body of one of them is thought to have been recovered, in a cave at a depth of around 60m (197ft).
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.
Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu travelled to Vaavu Atoll on Saturday to observe the search operations. Eight rescue divers went into the water today. When they surfaced, they realised Mr Mahdhee didn't come up, said government spokesman Mohamed Hossain Shareef.
The other divers immediately went into the water again and found Mahdhee had blacked out. The Maldives military has described the operation as very high risk, with unfavourable weather conditions.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani sent condolences, expressing solidarity: These days of grief for Italy are compounded by the news that one of your brave soldiers... died while attempting to dive to reach the bodies of our fellow Italians. Four of the Italian divers were part of a University of Genoa team, including professor of ecology Monica Montefalcone, her daughter, and two researchers. The fifth was a boat operations manager and diving instructor.
The five entered the water at Vaavu Atoll on Thursday morning, and local media said they were reported missing when they failed to resurface later on. Police reported that the weather was rough in the area, which is about 100km (62 miles) south of the capital, Male.
