The Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) has confirmed that search is still ongoing for the female tourist staying at InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort in Raa Atoll reported missing on Saturday night.

She is to have gone missing heart the while snorkeling alone near the resort.

MNDF revealed that they were still operating in Raa Atoll to look for the missing tourist, and described their efforts to search the land and sea area around where the woman went missing near the Maamunagau Resort.

The national defense force's Dornier flight, Coast Guard's "Kaamiyaabu" vessel and harbor craft was also deployed to assist search and rescue efforts by surveying the airspace above where the women is believed to have gone missing while out snorkeling alone.

MNDF's Northern Area Coast Guard squadron has been conducting search and rescue efforts, with support from divers from the Maamunagau Resort. 54 nautical miles were searched under these efforts on Monday alone, and a total of 138,000sqm of water has now been cleared by Coast Guard and resort divers in order to find the missing woman. Search efforts were also conducted on nearby uninhabited islands as well.

The foreign woman was reported as missing to MNDF at 8:58pm on Saturday, and the tourist has yet to be found. She was last seen wearing black swimming gear with a pattern of red flowers.

MNDF has requested assistance from sea vessels traveling through the area and those on nearby islands in finding information about the missing tourists. MNDF encourages all to contact the Coast Guards hotline number at 191.

MNDF has not disclosed the identity and nationality of the missing woman.