Marine biology professor Monica Montefalcone, her 20-year-old daughter Giorgia Sommacal, Muriel Oddenino, Gianluca Benedetti and Federico Gualtieri were all found dead after vanishing during a perilous 160-foot scuba dive inside an underwater cave near Alimatha Island in the Maldives’ Vaavu Atoll. The five Italian tourists had boarded the Duke of York yacht Thursday morning before descending into one of the region’s most dangerous deep-diving sites, prompting a frantic search operation after they failed to resurface. Authorities are now investigating whether rough weather, oxygen toxicity linked to possible tank malfunctions, or panic inside the confined cave system triggered the tragedy, which officials fear could be the deadliest diving accident in Maldivian history.
Read more at https://nypost.com/2026/05/14/world-news/5-dead-in-160-foot-maldives-scuba-dive/
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