Efforts to retrieve the bodies of four Italian divers believed to be trapped inside a submerged cave in the Maldives have intensified, as internationally recognised cave-diving specialists arrive to support a renewed recovery plan.
On Sunday, three Finnish divers from the Divers Alert Network (a worldwide scuba safety organisation) landed in the Maldives and headed straight to join the local coast guard team, where they are expected to help reshape the strategy for reaching the missing divers.
An additional expert is due to arrive later today, while specialist gear is also being transported in from Australia and the United Kingdom to bolster the operation.
“They were recommended by Italy and have completed deep dives and cave dives around the world,” Maldives chief government spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef told CNN.
One of the high-profile figures advising the effort is John Volanthen, a British Cave Rescue Council diving officer known for his involvement in the 2018 rescue of the Thai youth football team from a flooded cave system.
Volanthen said the cave’s depth and heavy silt are what is “unquestionably hampering” the mission.
“It’s essentially a very long way into the cave and normally, cave divers would lay a guideline to find their way out,” he said.
“That’s potentially what happened with the missing party.”
The missing divers are Monica Montefalcone, an ecology associate professor at the University of Genoa; her daughter Giorgia Sommacal; marine biologist Federico Gualtieri; and researcher Muriel Oddenino.
Authorities previously recovered the body of diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti near the cave entrance, reinforcing concerns that the remaining four are still further inside the system.
The continuing response has also involved a fatality. On Saturday, Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhee, 43, described by Shareef as “one of the most senior divers” in the Maldives, died during a second mission into the cave. He was on his way back toward the surface when his diving partner noticed he was in distress.
Other divers entered the water immediately but could not revive him. He is believed to have suffered fatal decompression-related complications during ascent. Mahudhee was later buried with full military honours in Malé, with thousands attending, including President Mohamed Muizzu, foreign diplomats and senior military representatives.
Divers describe the environment inside the cave as exceptionally hazardous. The system drops to around 70 metres at its deepest point and extends roughly 200 metres, with strong shifting currents, tight sections that open into a larger chamber, and total darkness. Because of gas limits and decompression requirements, each dive is typically capped at about three hours.
The circumstances surrounding the dive are now being examined as part of a criminal investigation. Under Maldivian law, recreational and commercial diving beyond 30 metres requires special authorisation, yet the cave entrance is close to 50 metres below the surface.
Officials have suspended the vessel’s licence while the investigation continues.
The British Cave Rescue Council and the Divers Alert Network have been approached for comment.