Scuba Diving

17 articles

Giorgio Bettin's and his wife Anna Maria Pistolato were newlyweds on vacation in the Maldives in 1983.

Echoes of a past tragedy: man revisits wife’s death after five Italians die in same area

From top left to right: Monica Montefalcone, Federico Gualtieri, Gianluca Benedetti, Muriel Odenino, Giorgia Somacal, and Mohamed Mahdi.

Bodies of four Italian tourists repatriated

A team of specialist divers from Finland recovered the bodies of two deceased individuals from the seabed on Tuesday.

Italian divers died after losing their way out of the underwater cave

A photograph showing a member of the recovery team entering the mouth of the cave during the operation to retrieve the bodies of those trapped inside.

Italian authorities seize diving equipment used by deceased divers

A Finnish diver prepares to begin the operation to recover the bodies of two of the four Italian tourists who died inside an underwater cave in Vaavu Atoll. The recovery efforts took place on Tuesday, May 19, 2026.

The Italian divers had not informed government of their intention to explore underwater caves

In this operation coordinated by DAN Europe, a technical diving team specialized in cave diving worked to recover the bodies from inside the cave.

Finnish divers reveal details of operation to recover bodies from underwater cave

The bodies of Monica Montefalcone and research fellow Federico Gualtieri, who were discovered trapped inside an underwater cave, have now been recovered.

Final two bodies recovered from diving accident site

A member of the Finnish diving team involved in the search for the deceased divers at the scene.

Bodies of two Italians recovered from cave

Sami Paakkarinen, a recovery diver from Finland.

Team of expert Finnish divers spent three hours navigating a deep underwater cave to recover bodies of Italian divers

A diver operates in the darkness to recover the bodies of the deceased.

Chilling footage emerges showing underwater cave where five tourists tragically lost their lives!

Montefalcone, a marine biologist from the University of Genoa in Italy, was visiting the Maldives on a research mission.

Final words of Italian professor who died in diving accident revealed

The final respects for Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahdi are currently being paid at the Islamic Centre.

Funeral prayers for Staff Sergeant Mahudhee held at Islamic Centre

The area where five divers went missing while diving in Vaavu Atoll.

Italian prosecutors launch investigation into deaths of Italian divers in Maldives

The victims of this incident include Monica Montefalcone (left) and her daughter, Giorgia Somacal.

Italian professor who passed away during a dive in Vaavu Atoll dedicated her entire life to exploring and researching wonders of the deep sea

The victim of this incident has been identified as Monica Montefalcone, an Associate Professor of Ecology at the University of Genoa in Italy.

Husband of marine biologist who died in diving accident: "My wife was among the best divers in the world"

The Italian nationals who died while diving in the Maldives have been identified as (from left) Gianluca Benedetti, Monica Montefalcone, Giorgia Somacal, Muriel Odenino, and Federico Gualtieri.

One member of an Italian diving group narrowly escaped the incident after a last-minute change of heart

The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) is currently conducting a search and rescue operation to locate the missing divers.

Officer dies during search operation for missing Italian divers