Sole survivor of Maldives dive tragedy who watched her five companions leave on fatal trip while ‘twist of fate’ kept her on boat

It turned out that the sixth diver, who set out to explore the caves in the Maldives, did not enter the water, but saved him from death.

According to Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the female diver, a student at the University of Genoa, remained on the Duke of York yacht on Thursday while five researchers and her fellow divers descended to the seabed at Vaavu atoll.

It is unclear why he chose not to dive, but the survivor is not returning to his family in Italy.

His diving companions, all Italian citizens, never resurfaced and were declared dead, with only a single body ever found in caves 200ft below the surface.

There were 20 other Italians on the yacht. It is unclear what their role was in the expedition, but the Italian Embassy in Sri Lanka offered them assistance.

The group boarded the ‘luxury’ Duke of York yacht, a foreign-run liveaboard dive ship, and disappeared near Alimatha, one of the island’s most popular diving spots.

The Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) said in a statement that aircraft and speedboats were deployed for a massive search after the group of five people were reported missing on Thursday afternoon.

Monica Montefalcone’s daughter Giorgia Sommacal (22) also passed away

Muriel Oddenino was also a researcher at the University of Genoa.

The statement said, “The body of one of the five divers who dived in Vaavu Atoll was found.”

‘The body was found in a cave. The remaining four divers are believed to be in the same cave, which extends to a depth of approximately 60 meters (200 feet).’

According to local media reports, the recovered body is believed to be that of marine biologist Monica Montefalcone.

Rescue teams continued their search for the remaining bodies on Friday, but local officials said the rescue operation was ‘high risk’ due to adverse weather conditions in the area.

Meanwhile, police have launched an investigation into the tragedy, but the cause of death is currently unknown.

While police investigated whether bad weather conditions affected divers’ visibility, authorities did not rule out many scenarios.

Weather conditions at the dive site on Thursday were unfavorable; winds were blowing between 25 and 30 miles per hour.

The Meteorological Department issued a yellow alert for the region yesterday morning.

Gianluca Benedetti from Padua was among those who died while diving.

According to Italian news outlet La Repubblica, none of the five divers surfaced, suggesting the group may have gotten lost in an underwater cave.

Due to poor weather conditions, low light and poor visibility, they may have lost their bearings, panicked and perhaps run out of air trying to find their way out.

Police also did not rule out the possibility that one of the five men was trapped while the others may have run out of air or panicked trying to rescue their colleagues.

Diving experts also speculate on various hypotheses.

According to local media reports, one of the most accepted hypotheses by the coast guard and experts is oxygen poisoning. This phenomenon occurs when the tank’s mixing is insufficient, making the oxygen toxic at certain depths.

‘There are many risks at 50 meters depth of the sea; This is a real tragedy,’ says Alfonso Bolognini, president of the Italian Association of Underwater and Hyperbaric Medicine.

There are several hypotheses we can make at the moment: An inadequate respiratory mixture can create a hyperoxic crisis when there is an increase in the partial pressure of oxygen in the tissues and blood plasma, which can cause neurological problems.

‘In a cave at a depth of 50 meters, one problem for a diver and a panic attack for another is enough,’ he adds, and continues: ‘This turbulence causes the water to become cloudy and can impair vision.

‘In these situations the panic component can even lead to fatal errors.’

The Duke of York’s yacht company supplies nitrox, a breathing mixture of nitrogen and oxygen, for scuba diving, as stated on its official website.

It is also unclear whether the Italians’ diving at depths of over 160 ft was regulated, according to the MNDF.

Image: Federico Gualtieri, who died in the Maldives

Meanwhile, it turned out that there was no local guide to accompany the group as they entered the cave, in accordance with Maldivian law.

Investigators are also trying to determine whether the group used the ‘Ariadne rope’, a rope used by divers to help them stay close together while exploring caves and find the entrance and exit of caverns.

In some caves, the use of rope is mandatory.

One of the victims of the sea cave tragedy was identified as 51-year-old Monica Montefalcone, a respected marine biologist, television personality and professor of Tropical Marine Ecology and Underwater Science at the University of Genoa.

His 22-year-old daughter Giorgia Sommacal also died. He had inherited his mother’s passion for marine life and diving, completing a degree in biomedical engineering at the University of Genoa.

The names of the other three victims were stated as Muriel Oddenino from Turin, Gianluca Benedetti from Padua and Federico Gualtieri from Omegna.

Born in Milan, Montefalcone was working at Distav, Department of Earth Sciences. He was the scientific director of the island monitoring campaign in the Maldives.

His department described him as ‘the most experienced, the best, the most competent’.

Montefalcone survived the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami that hit the Maldives.

Carlo Sommacal, Giorgia’s father and Montefalcone’s husband, said his wife was an ‘expert’ diver and was ‘never reckless’.

‘Monica would never recklessly risk the lives of her daughter and other children. Something happened down there.”

Oddenino, a 31-year-old marine biologist and ecologist, was his colleague at the University of Genoa.

He was an experienced diver and wrote scientific publications. She was described as ‘sweet and sensitive’ by a loved one.

Benedetti, 44, was an operations manager, diving instructor and boat captain.

According to initial reports, the five dead tourists had boarded the foreign-run liveaboard dive ship Duke of York (pictured) and disappeared near Alimatha.

Made up of 1,192 small coral islands scattered about 500 miles along the equator in the Indian Ocean, the Maldives is a luxury resort popular with divers. Divers lost near Alimatha (pictured)

After working in banking and finance for several years, he turned his passion for diving into a full-time career and moved to the Maldives in 2017.

He was operations manager and captain on the Duke of York, the diving yacht the group used for the expedition.

The Duke of York’s operator, Albatros, was described by Top Boat as ‘energetic, extremely sporty and fond of reading, classical cinema and chess’.

Speaking about her son’s tragic death, Benedetti’s mother told Italian news outlet Gazzettino: ‘I heard the news from the embassy. ‘I can’t say anything and you can only imagine the pain.’

Gualtieri, 31, was a scuba diving instructor and had recently graduated from the University of Genoa with a degree in marine biology and ecology.

He had previously praised his professor Montefalcone, saying: ‘Since I met him, he has always been my guide, encouraging me to follow my dreams and passions.’

His girlfriend Noemi De Luca paid tribute to him on social media, saying: ‘Three years together but always and forever in each other’s hearts. ‘You will always be in my heart.’

She added: ‘Know that I am always proud of you, I am proud of you and I always will be.’

Pictured: Marine biologist Muriel Oddenino. Described as ‘sweet and sensitive’ by a loved one

Image: Giorgia Sommacal. He inherited his mother Monica Montefalcone’s passion for diving

Local officials said it was the single worst diving accident in the country.

Maldives Tourism Minister Mohamed Ameen said coast guards and security forces were investigating remote seas where divers were reported missing on Thursday afternoon.

“I am deeply saddened by the tragic deep diving accident that occurred today at Vaavu Atoll,” Ameen said in a statement.

‘The coastguard and all relevant authorities are actively participating in the search and rescue operation.’

The Duke of York’s operator declined to comment when approached for comment.

The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed the incident.

The statement said, ‘Five Italians died following an accident that occurred while scuba diving in Vaavu atoll in the Maldives.’

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka said they were ‘in contact with the families of the victims to provide the necessary consular assistance’.

The Rome prosecutor’s office launched an investigation into the deaths of five Italians.

Made up of 1,192 small coral islands scattered about 500 miles along the equator in the Indian Ocean, the Maldives is a luxury resort popular with divers who often stay in secluded resorts or on dive boats.

Local regulations allow dives to a maximum depth of 98 feet, but experienced professionals have been known to go deeper.

Accidents related to diving and water sports are relatively rare in the South Asian country, although a number of fatal incidents have been reported in recent years.

In December, a British female tourist died while diving, and her distraught 71-year-old husband also died a few days later after falling ill.

The 26-year-old Japanese tourist disappeared after a diving trip near the capital in June.

Local media reported last year that at least 112 tourists had died in maritime-related incidents in the archipelago in the last five years, 42 of whom died in diving or snorkeling accidents.