Five Italian tourists who drowned during a cave dive in the Maldives were just minutes from the surface when tragedy struck, according to reports. The victims were identified as Monica Montefalcone, 52, a marine biologist from the University of Genoa, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, 20, researcher Muriel Oddenino, 31, recent graduate Federico Gualtieri, 31, and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti.
The group was believed to be around 15 minutes from the surface when they vanished and were later found dead without proper equipment. Maldivian rescue diver Staff Sgt Mohamed Mahdhee also died while searching for the group. Maldivian presidential spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Sharee said the cave is so deep that even with the best equipment, divers do not attempt to reach it.
Finnish diver Sami Paakkarinen, one of three who helped retrieve the bodies, said "tragic human error" was a key factor in the May 14 horror, which saw the group die 200 feet below the surface. He told The Sun that the group lacked proper cave-diving equipment, including a diving reel or a guided rope. Four of the bodies were recovered together, while Gualtieri's body was found on the day of the drowning.
Experts have suggested that oxygen toxicity and panic may have contributed to the deaths. Pulmonologist Claudio Micheletto told Italian outlet Adnkronos that it is likely "something went wrong with the tanks." He described death from oxygen toxicity as "one of the most dramatic deaths that can occur during a dive." Alfonso Bolognini, president of the Italian Society of Underwater and Hyperbaric Medicine, noted that a panic attack in a cave at depth could lead to fatal errors.
