Maldives Suspends Search for 4 Italian Divers as Rough Seas Halt 50-Meter Cave Recovery
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · May 15
Maldives Suspends Search for 4 Italian Divers as Rough Seas Halt 50-Meter Cave Recovery
14 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · May 15
Friday’s recovery mission for four Italian divers was suspended after rough seas repeatedly blocked access to an underwater cave in Vaavu Atoll; authorities expect to resume the operation on Saturday.
Eight divers searched in pairs, mapped the cave and explored two of its three chambers, but oxygen and decompression limits curtailed the effort; officials believe the four missing victims went deeper inside after one body was found near the entrance.
Italy said two specialists—a deep-sea rescue expert and a cave-diving expert—are joining the mission, while its embassy assists about 20 other Italians from the same expedition aboard the Duke of York.
The five victims apparently died while exploring caves at about 50 meters, a depth beyond standard recreational diving limits and one that sharply raises cave-diving risks such as disorientation and poor visibility.
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