Tag: tourist death

MNDF divers retrieve body of missing Korean tourist

Police have confirmed that the body of a Korean tourist reported missing yesterday (December 17) from Meedhuhparu resort in Raa Atoll has been discovered today in a joint operation conducted with staff at the property and a Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) dive team.

Authorities have said that the body of the deceased, identified as 32 year-old Korean national Dohwan Oh, has been transported to Male’ and is now awaiting repatriation.

In a statement issued today, the Maldives Police Service has said that the deceased was discovered 20 metres underwater in the area where he was first reported missing following a snorkelling excursion with his wife.

Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef could not confirm when exactly the body would be repatriated at the time of press.

Tourist safety

Addressing the growing influx of tourists from Asian destinations coming to the Maldives, Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Gafoor today pledged in local media to enforce stricter safety measures across the industry to try and cut down potential snorkelling incidents.

Adheeb stated that the industry must evolve and adapt to the changing market geared increasingly towards Asian visitors who were generally not as adept at swimming as tourists from more established markets.  According to the tourism minister, this evolution includes increasing ocean awareness for tourists while monitoring and strengthening existing regulations.

“If such incidents keep repeating it is a major concern. It will adversely affect our tourism. We need to change the services being provided with the market,” Adheeb told local media.

Missing Chinese national

Meanwhile, Police Spokesperson Haneef said today he was unable to comment over whether the case of another tourist who went missing from the Bandos Island Resort and Spa earlier this month – initially suspected to be a snorkelling incident – was presently being treated as a criminal investigation.

Immigration authorities confirmed Saturday (december 15) that a Chinese national allegedly linked to the disappearance of a tourist staying at a Maldives holiday resort had fled the country, defying a court-mandated travel ban issued Wednesday (December 12).

Local media had previously reported that the husband of Chinese tourist Song Yapin,who went missing from the Bandos Island Resort and Spa on December 6, had accused a fellow Chinese national staying at the property of murdering his wife.

Haneef said that as police investigations were ongoing into the incident, no details on the nature of its work could be given at present.

The MNDF confirmed on Saturday that the search to locate the missing Chinese national was continuing.  However, MNDF Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem said that the country’s coastguard had presently ceased sending out dive teams to explore local waters.

“We will not be calling off our operation until the person is found, but we will be amending our operation on a daily basis,” Colonel Raheem said at the time.

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Divers continue search for Chinese tourist missing from Maldives resort

Coastguard divers are trying to locate a Chinese tourist reported missing from the Bandos Island Resort and Spa property since Thursday (December 6).

Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem said that a diving team was conducting further searches of the area surrounding the resort to try and locate the tourist, identified as a female Chinese national who had been staying at the resort.

When contacted by Minivan News today, a spokesperson for Bandos Island Resort and Spa said it would not be making any comments on the matter at present, asking to be contacted in 24 hours time.

“It is not possible for us to comment today, our manager is not on duty,” said a representative for the property’s marketing department said.

Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef was not responding to calls from Minivan News at the time of press.

Boat collision

Details of the search operation were announced after a male tourist from Finland was killed last Sunday (December 2) when an express speedboat service to the island of Hulhumale’ collided with another vessel belonging to the Bandos Island Resort and Spa.  Nine local people were also injured in the collision.

The Honorary Consul of Finland in the Maldives confirmed this week that it was assisting the resort property in working to arrange repatriation of the tourist, while investigations by police and transport authorities continue into the matter.

Following the collision on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) said it had temporarily suspended its express speedboat service between Hulhumale’ and Male’ while it reviewed guest safety procedures.

“We believe we need to do some work on safety,” a company spokesperson told Minivan News. “We will be working with transport authorities, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police on the matter and will resume the services after that.” Dhoni services will continue to run between Male’ and Hulhumale’ as normal, the MTCC added yesterday.

Danger awareness

Over the last 12 months, tourist deaths – usually while snorkelling – have been disproportionately higher among Chinese tourists, which now account for a majority of Maldives tourist arrivals even compared to traditional European markets.

Mohamed Ibrahim ‘Sim’ from the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) previously told Minivan News that Chinese guests in particular needed to be made more aware of the dangers of snorkelling in the Maldives, “because it is a totally different environment than what they are used to.”

Back in October, police said that a 26 year-old male from China staying at Alif Dhaal Atoll Vakafaru resort was suspected to have died in a snorkelling accident at the property.

Meanwhile in January, two Chinese nationals on vacation at separate island resorts in the Maldives were found dead within 48 hours of each other.  Authorities said they suspected both incidents were the result of snorkelling accidents.

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Maldives resort arranging repatriation of Finnish tourist killed in speedboat collision

The body of a Finnish tourist killed this week in a speedboat collision near to Male’ will be repatriated “as soon as possible”, the Honorary Consul of Finland in the Maldives has said.

An as yet unidentified male from Finland, who was said to be holidaying in the country with his wife, was killed after an express speedboat service to the island of Hulhumale’ collided with another vessel belonging to the Bandos Island Resort and Spa on Sunday (December 2).

Nine local people were also injured in the collision.  One of the injured – a 29 year-old woman – suffered a severe head injury that was since said to have improved, according to authorities.

A spokesperson for the honorary consul confirmed to Minivan News that its representatives had met with the wife of the deceased and were presently trying to assist the resort in which the couple had been staying with arrangements to return the body home.

The spokesperson said that the consulate was unable to provide any information on the exact cause of death, adding that it was waiting on the details from an ongoing police investigation.

Local media, citing police sources, reported yesterday that the Finnish national had been thrown overboard following the collision and was said to have been found dead when retrieved from the water.

Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Hassan Ahneef was unable to clarify the reports, claiming that investigations were continuing into the matter.

Following the collision on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) said it had temporarily suspended its express speedboat service between Hulhumale’ and Male’ while it reviewed guest safety procedures.

“We believe we need to do some work on safety,” a company spokesperson told Minivan News. “We will be working with transport authorities, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police on the matter and will resume the services after that.” Dhoni services will continue to run between Male’ and Hulhumale’ as normal, the MTCC added yesterday.

When contacted today, the MTCC said it would be issuing a statement on the matter once the details of its own internal investigation and the findings of the police has been completed.

Meanwhile, Bandos Island Resort and Spa, which operated the other speedboat involved in the collision, said it was “not in a situation to discuss the incident” until police have completed their investigations.

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Express ferry suspended after Finnish tourist dies in speedboat collision

A collision between two speed boats on Sunday evening left a Finnish tourist dead and nine other people injured.

The collision occurred between an express speedboat service to the island of Hulhumale’ – which is located near to the capital of Male’ – and another vessel belonging to the Bandos Island Resort and Spa property.

Police Spokesperson Hassan Haneef told Minivan News that a Finnish national had died following the collision, while eight Maldivians also received minor injuries. A 29-year old local woman was also injured in the incident, receiving what police described as severe head injuries. Authorities said her condition was now improving.

Haneef claimed that the matter was being treated as an accident until the exact cause of the incident could be identified. He added that existing transport regulations remained in place for all speed boat services following the incident.

However, a spokesperson for the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) said it had temporarily suspended its express speedboat service between Hulhumale’ and Male’ while it reviewed guest safety procedures.

“We believe we need to do some work on safety,” a company spokesperson told Minivan News. “We will be working with transport authorities, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police on the matter and will resume the services after that.”

Dhoni services will continue to run between Male’ and Hulhumale’ as normal, the MTCC added.

Asked to clarify its view on the collision, the state-owned company declined to comment on the incident until investigations were carried out both by itself and police.

Bandos Island Resort and Spa, which operated the other speedboat involved in the collision, said it did not wish to comment on the issue at the time when contacted by Minivan News.

“We are not in a situation to discuss the incident,” a spokesperson for the resort said today. “We are waiting for police to complete their investigations.”

The incident occurred around 8:25pm near the island of Dhoonidhoo in Kaafu Atoll.

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French tourist found dead near Paradise Island Resort

A French tourist, identified as 49 year-old Alan Marshall, has been found dead near Paradise Island Resort this morning.

Marshall went missing during a late afternoon swim on January 7.

Marshall was vacationing on Club Med Kanifinolhu resort with his wife, daughter and son-in-law since last week. The family was due to leave the Maldives on January 12.

Kahifinolhu General Affairs Manager Abdu Samad said the victim had been snorkeling off the northern end of Kanifinolhu when he went missing around 4:30 pm. The family immediately reported him to resort staff who launched an investigation with divers.

Police were informed within one hour of Marshall’s disappearance. According to Samad, the search continued through the night until Marshall was found this morning within 30 meters of Paradise Island.

No details have yet been released as to the cause of death. However, police officials today said there was no cause for suspicion of foul play.

Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said police would “try to find out as much as possible about what happened” during their investigation.

“We have never had an issue with that area of our reef,” said Samad. “It is narrow and there can be a strong current but he was swimming during low tide. We can’t understand what happened.”

According to Samad, Marshall’s son-in-law had spoken with him in the water prior to returning to shore. On the beach, Marshall’s wife inquired after her husband’s whereabouts. Unable to see him, they alerted the resort.

Samad noted that Marshall had said he could swim upon arriving at the resort, however his family confirmed that he had a weak arm. “The investigation will look into any medications he may have been taking,” Samad said.

Marshall’s body has been moved to a mortuary on Male’. Samad expects the investigation to be concluded today, and that the resort is currently arranging to transport the family and the body to Sri Lanka. “There they can arrange for a proper autopsy or a cremation. We are also looking into their transport back to France,” Samad said.

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