Five Italian divers died in a scuba diving accident while exploring an underwater cave in Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, at a depth of around 50-60 meters on May 14, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. The group included marine biology professor Monica Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, researchers Muriel Oddenino and Federico Gualtieri, and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti [2, 3, 6].
Benedetti's body was recovered shortly after the accident on May 14 [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. The other four bodies were located in a deep chamber inside the cave during a multi-day search involving Finnish expert divers alongside eight Maldivian rescue divers [2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8]. Two bodies were recovered on May 19 and the final two on May 20 after a technically difficult mission delayed by poor weather and complex cave terrain [3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 8].
The recovery operation suffered a further fatality when Maldivian rescue diver Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahdhee died from decompression sickness on May 16 while conducting recovery dives [1, 2, 5, 6, 10]. Mohamed Hossain Shareef said, "Eight rescue divers went into the water today. When they surfaced, they realised Mr Mahdhee didn't come up" [2]. Maldivian Tourism Minister Mohamed Ameen said Mahdhee's courage and sacrifice "will always be remembered" [10].
The Italian divers reportedly did not use optimal cave diving equipment such as safety reels or guide lines [11]. Finnish diver Sami Paakkarinen said, "The equipment we found them with wasn't optimal. They weren't using underwater caving gear...it's not very wise to do so without a safety line."
The divers had a permit to dive to 50 meters but did not include the cave dive in their authorization request to Maldivian authorities [3]. Maldives permits recreational diving only to 30 meters maximum [5, 12, 7]. Finnish recovery experts believe the divers became lost in a dead-end tunnel with limited air supply, making escape difficult [12]. CEO Laura Marroni stated, "There was no way out from there... The divers’ bodies were all found inside, as if they had mistaken it for the right one."
The team was conducting scientific research on climate change's impact on biodiversity, but the cave dive was not authorized by the University of Genoa [3, 11]. Carlo Sommacal, husband of Montefalcone, said, "My wife is among the best divers on the face of the earth. And that she’s always been conscientious. Never would she have endangered the life of our daughter or the others with them." [6]
The exact cause of death is under investigation, with possible factors including oxygen toxicity, panic, or human error in the cave dive [11, 6].
Further dive operations to recover any remaining remains or equipment may continue, according to rescue officials. Mohamed Hossain Shareef said, "Further dives [are] to be carried out in the coming days to recover the bodies." [2]
