Five touris­ts includ­ing honeym­ooning couple have drowne­d in a weekCOLOMBO: Five tourists including a honeymooning couple have drowned in a single week in the Maldives, officials said, prompting a nationwide safety warning to holiday resorts in the pristine islands. Tourism officials said all resort operators in the paradise archipelago were urged on Monday to keep a close eye on their clients after the spate of deaths. Around 1.4 million tourists visit the Maldives every year but the latest government data shows just 31 people drowned in 2017. An 84-year-old Czech tourist and a 66-year-old South Korean woman died within two days of each other at a resort near the capital Male while snorkelling. The Maldives relies on tourism and visitors come for the turquoise waters and white sand beaches of the islands scattered some 800 kilometres (500 miles) across the equator.

Source: The Express Tribune January 22, 2019 12:44 UTC