The death toll in the Maldives scuba tragedy rose after officials reported that a Maldivian diver who was searching for the bodies of five Italian tourists who died in an underwater lake earlier this week has also died. According to The Sun, Sergeant Major Mohammed Mahudhi fell ill on the third day of the recovery operation in Vaavu Atoll, which translated to an ex-post by the Maldivian Army.“His courage, sacrifice and service to the nation will always be remembered. Our deepest condolences go out to his family and colleagues,” the Army reportedly said, according to the outlet.Mahudhi was one of eight divers deployed to find the bodies of Monica Montefalcon, a professor of marine biology at the University of Genoa, and her 20-year-old daughter Giorgia Somacal, who disappeared during a 160-foot dive into the Underworld Cave.Muriel Odenino of Turin, Gianluca Benedetti of Padua, and Federico Gualtieri of Borgomanero also failed to recover from the fatal dive.Authorities said only Benedetti’s body had been recovered.The causes of death of the divers are still under investigation, although some experts have theorized that oxygen toxicity and extreme panic are possible factors that led to the deaths of the five scuba divers.
‘Something must have happened…my wife is one of the best divers’
Montefalcon’s husband, Carlo Somacal, doubted that “something might have happened” in the cave, saying that his wife, a professor at the University of Genoa, was such an experienced diver that he did not take the risk. “The only certainty I have is that my wife is one of the best divers on Earth. And she has always been conscientious. She would never have endangered the lives of our daughter or the others with them,” he told La Repubblica on Friday.“Something must have happened there,” the retired scientist said. He said, “Maybe someone was in trouble, maybe there was a problem with the oxygen cylinder, I have no idea. But I am ready to swear on anything about Monica’s behavior.”
Oxygen poisoning behind death?
Although the cause of deaths is not yet known, experts suspect oxygen toxicity which occurs when too much oxygen becomes dangerous. Humans are made to breathe air containing approximately 21% oxygen. But according to UMass Memorial Health, when someone breathes oxygen in unusually high concentrations or under intense pressure for too long, it can be toxic to the body.This happens because excess oxygen creates an overload of unstable molecules called “free radicals.” Normally, the body can neutralize them with antioxidants. But when too many build up too quickly, they begin to damage cells and tissues.