Divers in Maldives tragedy ‘sucked into cave and unable to escape before oxygen ran out’

Five Italian divers tragically died in the Maldives as a theory has emerged that a freak underwater vacuum may have sucked them into a cave, causing them to run out of oxygen

Five elite Italian divers may have been dragged to their deaths inside a Maldives cave after a freak underwater vacuum trapped them until their oxygen ran out, a new theory suggests. A specialist recovery team has successfully retrieved the bodies of all five victims from the depths of the Thinwana Kandu cave, notoriously dubbed “shark cave”.

University researcher Monica Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, Muriel Oddenino and Federico Gualtieri were all located by the unit after vanishing on Thursday morning.

The academic research party had been exploring the area alongside highly experienced diving instructor and boat captain Gianluca Benedetti, whose body was recovered last week.

Because the entire group consisted of highly accomplished underwater experts, investigators have been left completely baffled by how the tragedy occurred.

While multiple theories are currently being explored, a new hypothesis suggests the group was forcefully pulled into the cavern by a natural vacuum.

On Wednesday, the three Finnish divers responsible for recovering the bodies handed over GoPro cameras belonging to the victims to local police. Authorities hope the footage will provide vital clues to reconstruct their final moments.

Alfonso Bolognini, president of the Italian Society of Underwater and Hyperbaric Medicine, told Italian outlet Adnkronos that the group might have been caught off guard while assessing the cave for future expeditions.

He explained that the unique structure of the cavern’s entrance could have triggered an overwhelming current, dragging the divers inside against their will.

The narrow bottleneck layout of the cave potentially created a “Venturi effect,” a scientific phenomenon where fluid is forced to accelerate through a tight space, causing a catastrophic drop in pressure that acts like a vacuum.

Bolognini formed his theory after analysing underwater data provided by expert DAN Europe divers.

He said: “They first sent a ROV (remotely operated vehicle) to the cave entrance. They couldn’t get it in due to the very strong currents, so they had to go there themselves.”

Examining a map of the cave sent over by the recovery team, Bolognini fears a “formidable” Venturi effect took place.

He said: “Two things could have happened after the suction. Either everyone was sucked in, or one was sucked in and the others attempted a rescue.”

The theory goes some way to explaining how such a profoundly qualified crew could find themselves in fatal danger.

Monica was a veteran of the sport with more than 5,000 completed dives. Following the tragedy, her grieving husband fiercely defended her reputation, rubbishing any claims that she would ever gamble with her daughter’s safety.

Speaking to the newspaper Repubblica, heartbroken husband and father Carlo Sommacal said: “The only certainty I have is that my wife is among the best divers on the face of the earth.” He added that his wife “would never have put our daughter’s life at risk.”

Bolognini suspects the group had been exploring a nearby reef before making a fateful, last-minute decision to check out the cave at the tail-end of their excursion.

He said: “They decided to make this dive a little deeper to view the entrance, they were sucked into a probably dark environment, with zero visibility even for finning, in a state of great disorientation, probably due to panic.

“In their desperate search for a way out, they probably also ran out of air. But that’s it, In my opinion, a fairly reliable reconstruction of what happened.”

The Rome Prosecutor’s Office has now officially opened a manslaughter investigation into the incident. The recovery mission was severely delayed by treacherous weather conditions over the weekend.

Maldivian military rescue diver Mohamed Mahudhee died from decompression sickness on Saturday while trying to reach the group, bringing the total death toll of the disaster to six.

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