Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has denied claims of high-voltage undersea cables as the cause of the recent tourist drownings.
EPA's Director General Ibrahim Naeem told RaajjeMV that there are no such high-voltage underwater cables in Maldives.
Naeem said this in response to the accusation made by a tourist who visited Maldives in 2017. Naeem said there might be small underwater cables but that it would be immediately removed if there’s a leak.
He also accused those spreading the rumor of trying to harm the Maldives tourism industry.
Naeem said that the tourist deaths are the result of those in the industry being negligent in looking out for their safety, which includes lack of lifeguards and not instructing tourists when it comes to the dangers of swimming at sea, such as straying too far into deeper waters and getting caught in a current.
In an interview with The Irish Sun, Lisa Mole, who travelled to Maldives in 2017, recounted her ordeal of losing consciousness while swimming in the Maldives.
The Irish Sun reported that 51-year-old Lisa Moles, who has no underlying health problem, lost consciousness while swimming with her husband and that two other tourists who were medical professionals managed to resuscitate her.
The incident occurred at the same spot where Andrew Roddy, a 30-year-old newlywed from Dublin, drowned while on honeymoon that same year.
“Top medics have launched an investigation into Lisa’s case. One has claimed she was “electrocuted” by undersea cables — and suggests that may have also been the cause of Andrew’s death,” stated the Irish Sun.
Five tourists have reportedly died in the first 21 days since the start of 2019. The first reported deaths were of a couple from the Philippines who drowned on the 13th while on honeymoon in K. Dhiffushi. A tourist had also drowned on the 16th in Paradise Island Resort.
Two deaths were reported on the 20th. An 84-year-old from the Czech Republic died in Paradise Island Resort and a Russian national drowned while swimming during a safari trip.
