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Bodies of Italian divers did not have optimal equipment, says rescuer
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Bodies of Italian divers did not have optimal equipment, says rescuer

BBC News · May 22, 2026, 5:54 PM · Also reported by 4 other sources

Key takeaways

  • A member of the diving team searching for the bodies of the Italian divers.
  • The body of the first diver was found soon after the five disappeared in a scuba diving accident at the 60-metre-deep (197ft) cave in Vaavu Atoll.
  • It took several days before the rest of the group were found deep inside the cave by a team of specialist Finnish and Maldivian divers.

Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.

Olivia Ireland Sami Paakkarinen/Dan Europe. A member of the diving team searching for the bodies of the Italian divers. A member of the diving team that recovered the bodies of Italian scuba divers in the Maldives has said the equipment they were found with "was not optimal".

Images from inside the cave where the four Italians were discovered earlier this week were taken by Finnish diver Sami Paakkarinen, who told Italian media "the bodies were all together in one section of the cave", which he said was very deep and "very challenging".

The body of the first diver was found soon after the five disappeared in a scuba diving accident at the 60-metre-deep (197ft) cave in Vaavu Atoll.

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