Two fishermen have been brought to Dhidhdhoo island in Haa Dhaal atoll after an accident while out at sea on Tuesday night.

The Maldives National Defence Force said that the men were crew members of a vessel named ‘Arc’, which was 12 nautical miles from northern-most Thuraakunu island when the incident occurred.  

Other members of the crew said that the men experienced difficulty breathing after emerging from scraping the vessel’s hull.

The incident was reported to the Maldives National Defence Force at about 6:40pm on Tuesday and they had dispatched a team to their rescue.

Rescue officers say that they were taken to Dhidhdhoo island by 08:35pm and doctors described their condition as serious.