Five tourists die during diving excursion in 160ft-deep cave in Maldives

By SABRINA PENTY, FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:35, 14 May 2026 | Updated: 16:59, 14 May 2026 Five Italian tourists have died while exploring underwater caves 160 ft below the surface in the Maldives.  The group had set off on a diving expedition on Thursday morning to explore the Vaavu atoll, according to Italian media.  Authorities received reports of the divers' disappearance at around 1.45pm local time after they failed to resurface at around midday.  During the search and rescue operation, their bodies were discovered. According to initial reports, the five tourists had boarded the Duke of York, a foreign-operated live-aboard diving vessel, and they disappeared near Alimatha, one of the atoll's most popular diving spots.  Police have launched an investigation into the tragedy, but the cause of death remains unknown at this time, and no official statement has yet been released. Weather conditions at the dive site today were unfavourable, with winds blowing between 25 and 30 miles per hour.  The meteorological service issued a yellow alert for the area this morning, which remains in place. Italy's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed the incident.  Five Italian tourists have died while exploring underwater caves 160 ft below the surface in the Maldives (file image) 'Following an accident during a scuba dive, five Italians died in the Vaavu atoll, in the Maldives,' a statement read.  It added that five died 'while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 meters.'  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka, have said they have been contacting the victims' families to provide any necessary consular assistance.' The names of the victims have not yet been released, but according to Italian news outlet Corriere della Sera, one of the victims is a professor and researcher at the University of Genova.  Another victim is believed to be one of the professor's close relatives.  This is a breaking news story, more to follow.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.