What was visible from the surface: a photo essay from the recovery dive at Devana Kandu

I was at the recovery site that day. This is what I saw.

There were several vessels anchored a short distance from Alimatha resort. This included the Coast Guard ship Ghaazee, an MNDF dive boat (HC139), a rubber dinghy carrying messages between the two MNDF boats, and a sea ambulance (E954). A Marine Police vessel (057) was visible on the other side of the channel. The Nautilus Two live-aboard was moored close by. The vessel's speedboat, Nauti Go 1, arrived as a courier for the Italian ambassador, who was spotted on Ghaazee.  A separate police vessel from Vaavu Felidhoo followed later. 

10:32am - I arrive at the scene on a small speedboat chartered from a Felidhoo fisherman. The weather is rough. The sea is choppy. 

10:48am - MNDF divers do what appears to be a pre-dive briefing on the dive boat. 

11:09am - A safety marker buoy (SMB) goes up near the site. Free-divers can be spotted in the water. 

11:17am - Nauti Go, a speedboat attached to the live-aboard vessel from Nautilus, arrives at the scene and approaches the Coast Guard vessel.  When I asked, they told me they were there as a courier for the Italian Ambassador.

11:28am - The dive boat approaches the safety marker buoy and prepares for entry.

11:40am - Eight MNDF divers, kitted up in recreational dive gear, enter the water from the dive boat. Divers are carrying extra tanks. But they are not side-mounted or attached. At least two Dive Propulsion Vessels are also handed to the divers. 

12:09pm - The sea ambulance speeds across the channel. Ghaazee heads in the opposite direction. At least 12 people are on deck. The vessels appear to be conducting a search.

12:16pm - Free-divers get in the water and a second safety marker buoy appears near the first. 

12:26pm - The Marine Police vessel starts heading towards the operation site. Police officers are preparing to get into the water. 

12:44pm - An MNDF officer on the dinghy motions one finger to the crew of the sea ambulance. The sea ambulance patrols the area.

12:46pm - The same dinghy approaches the Marine Police vessel and motions with a finger. A Dive Propulsion Vessel is handed down to Marine Police divers who were waiting in the water. The divers start descending. 

12:51pm - The sea ambulance and Ghazee continue patrolling.

12:53pm - The police speedboat from Vaavu Felidhoo arrives at the scene and approaches the Marine Police vessel.

1:00pm - A third safety marker buoy appears in the water.

1:20pm - The dinghy approaches three free-divers near the buoys. They appear to be huddled together in a close circle. Two divers get on the dinghy, which speeds towards the sea ambulance. Coast Guard crew speak on the phone and motions towards the sea ambulance. 

1:22pm - The dinghy approaches the sea ambulance on its far side. My view is blocked. A person on the sea ambulance handles a white cloth. Something appears to have been lifted from the water.

1:24pm - The sea ambulance speeds away. 

1:26pm - MNDF divers start surfacing and get on the MNDF dive boat.

1:35pm - I leave. 

Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhee was pronounced dead at ADK Hospital in Malé later that day.

Editor's note: Atoll Dispatch is the photo column of Sophia Nasif, who was at the Devana Kandu recovery site on assignment from an international news agency. 

Sophia Nasif is a British-Maldivian photojournalist based in Malé, focusing on culture, environment and anthropology in the Maldives. She is the Ocean Culture Life ambassador for the Maldives, a member of PhotoAsia's Decoding the Anthropocene cohort, and a Revolutionary Storyteller for Photographers Without Borders.