A high-risk operation to recover the bodies of four Italian divers from deep inside an underwater cave in the Maldives has been suspended after rough seas repeatedly hampered efforts.
Speaking a day after the body of a fifth member of the dive group was recovered on Thursday, Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani said despite the poor weather conditions everything possible would be done to bring the victims home.
The cause of the deaths remained under investigation. The recovery operation was expected to resume on Saturday.
“Unfortunately, the searches are suspended due to bad weather, but we will do everything possible to recover the bodies of our compatriots,” Mr Tajani told a political event in Italy.
Esprimiamo profondo cordoglio per la tragica scomparsa di Monica Montefalcone, ricercatrice del DISTAV dell’@UniGenova, della figlia Giorgia Sommacal e delle altre persone morte ieri durante un’immersione alle Maldive.
Con Monica Montefalcone abbiamo fondato il progetto Mare… pic.twitter.com/iBWXacRatj— Greenpeace Italia (@Greenpeace_ITA) May 15, 2026
Italy’s foreign ministry said the dive group had “apparently died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres (164 feet)” in the Vaavu Atoll on Thursday.
The victims were identified as Monica Montefalcone, an associate ecology professor at the University of Genoa, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, marine biologist Federico Gualtieri, researcher Muriel Oddenino and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti, according to the Maldivian government.
Mr Benedetti’s body was recovered on Thursday.
Prof Montefalcone’s husband, Carlo Sommacal, said he believed something unexpected must have occurred and ruled out recklessness on her part.
“Something must have happened,” he told Italian TV channel Rete 4.
He said his wife was a disciplined diver who carefully weighed risks before each descent.
He recalled her telling him at times: “This one I can do, you can’t.”
Cave diving is a highly technical and dangerous activity that requires specialised training, equipment and strict safety protocols.
(My wife) had two lives — one on land and one in her environment, the water
Risks increase sharply in overhead environments and at depth, particularly when conditions deteriorate.
Experts say it is easy to become disoriented or lost inside caves, particularly as sediment clouds can sharply reduce visibility.
Diving at 50 metres also exceeds the maximum depth recommended for recreational divers by most major established scuba certifying agencies, with depths beyond 40 metres considered technical diving, which requires specialised training and equipment.
The recreational diving limit in the Maldives is 30 metres.
Mr Sommacal said his wife survived the 2004 tsunami while diving off Kenya, resurfacing with other experienced divers despite the danger, and later returned to diving after a lengthy recovery from serious health complications.
“She had two lives — one on land and one in her environment, the water,” he said.
Maldivian presidential spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef said eight divers took part in Friday’s search and, working in pairs, explored the depths and drew up a map to continue the mission on Saturday.
He said Mr Benedetti’s body was found near the mouth of the cave and authorities believed the remaining four had entered the cave.
The cave is so deep that divers even with the best equipment do not try to approach
Two Italians — a deep-sea rescue expert and a cave diving expert — are expected to join the recovery effort, Mr Shareef said.
Italian officials said around 20 other Italians who were on the same expedition aboard a vessel named the Duke of York were safe. Italy’s embassy in Colombo was providing assistance to those onboard and had contacted the Red Crescent, which offered to deploy volunteers to help provide psychological support.
The vessel was searching for safe harbour from poor weather conditions, and was waiting for conditions to improve before returning to Male, the Italian ministry said.
Greenpeace Italia, the environmental organisation, paid tribute to Prof Montefalcone as a passionate advocate for marine protection, saying it would miss “her professionalism and her advice immensely” and “that special light she had in her eyes when she spoke about the wonders of the sea and the importance of protecting them”.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology offered condolences for all the victims.
It said Prof Montefalcone had been widely recognised for her work studying and protecting the marine environment.
The Italian ministry said it was co-ordinating with the Divers Alert Network, a specialist diving organisation, to support recovery operations and the repatriation of the bodies.
It said the cave entered by the five divers was divided into three large chambers connected by narrow passages. Recovery teams explored two of the three chambers, but the search was limited due to considerations over oxygen and decompression.
They would explore the third chamber on Saturday, the ministry said.
Italian officials and the honorary consul were in contact with the victims’ families to provide assistance.
