44-year-old Gadhdhoo man who went missing while fishing found dead

A man who went missing during a fishing expedition has been found dead underwater early Sunday morning.

The Police said they received a report at approximately 5:40am regarding a fisherman who had gone missing from a fishing vessel. He was located underwater following an extensive search operation and subsequently transported to GDh. Gadhdhoo.

Providing additional details, a Police spokesperson told Sun that the man was already deceased when he was found.

Gadhdhoo Emergency Operations Centre identified the deceased as Ishaaq Rasheed, 44, from Asia, Gadhdhoo, adding he showed no signs of life when his body was recovered from the sea.

According to the Centre, Ishaaq went missing while diving for bait alongside another individual – Rasheed Ismail from GA. Kanduhulhudhoo – in waters outside GDh. Maaveddhoo’s main reef.

The pair reportedly ventured into the waters at approximately 5:00am. Rasheed completed the dive and returned to the vessel at around 5:30am.

Citing Rasheed, the Centre detailed that both men had descended together to a depth of approximately 10 meters while carrying a bait net. Rasheed began to resurface after reaching that depth, with the bait net, expecting Ishaaq to follow. However, Ishaaq did not resurface alongside him, prompting the crew members of the vessel to launch a search for him.

A foreign crew member onboard reportedly observed a light from a flashlight underwater near the bow of the vessel. The Gadhdhoo Emergency Center said a surface search was launched immediately thereafter.

However, as no other divers were onboard at the time, an underwater search could not begin immediately. The Gadhdhoo Council was informed of the incident at 5:30am, which notified the Police at 5:36am.

A joint search operation involving police officers and local volunteers was subsequently launched, comprising two teams with a total of seven participants. According to Gadhdhoo Emergency Centre, drones were also deployed by the Police during the search operation.

The first dive team ventured underwater at 7:35am, followed by a second team at 7:38 a.m. According to the Emergency Center, it was the first team which located Ishaaq’s body. They recovered the body and resurfaced with it at 7:49am. Divers reported that he showed no signs of life at the time of recovery.

Ishaaq’s body was transported to Gadhdhoo by speedboat at 7:58am.

The incident marks another tragic maritime accident, adding to a number of similar cases that have previously claimed lives at sea.