Five Italians have died in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives, the foreign ministry in Rome has said.

Axar.az informs, citing BBC, that "The divers are believed to have died while attempting to explore caves at a depth of 50 metres (164ft)," the ministry said, adding that this happened in Vaavu Atoll.

The Maldives' military said one body had been found in a cave about 60 metres underwater, and the other four divers were believed to be also there.

It said divers with special equipment had been sent to the area, describing a search operation as a very high risk.

The incident is believed to be the worst single diving accident in the tiny Indian Ocean nation, a popular tourist destination because of its string of coral islands.

The five Italians entered the water on Thursday morning, local media reported.

The crew of the diving vessel they were travelling on reported them missing when they failed to resurface later on.

Police said the weather was rough in the area, about 100km (62 miles) south of the capital Male. A yellow warning was issued for passenger boats and fishermen.