Russian tourist killed by shark in scuba diving incident
Two Russian tourists have died in the Philippines after a scuba diving trip ended with one of them drowning and the other being attacked by sharks.
The divers, named locally as Ilia Peregudin, 29, and Maksim Melekhov, 39, were found dead after a strong current separated them from their group in a popular Philippine scuba spot.
Mr Melekhov is believed to have drowned and Mr Peregudin is thought to have been attacked by sharks. His right arm was missing when he was found by search and rescue teams.
Two other Russian tourists managed to swim back safely to their dive boat off Verde Island, in the province of Batangas, the Philippine coast guard provincial commander Capt Airland Lapitan said.
The dive instructor and other divers in the area, along with Philippine coast guard personnel, immediately launched a search, according to Mr Lapitan.
Mr Melekhov was found unconscious at sea an hour later and was declared dead by doctors in a Batangas hospital, he said.
'The other Russian diver was found while being attacked by sharks. His right arm, unfortunately, had been severed and the sharks were moving around him,' Mr Lapitan told The Associated Press. 'They somehow managed to pull him away.'
An investigation is underway and the coast guard will meet provincial officials to discuss ways to prevent such deadly incidents at Verde Island and other dive spots.
Shark attacks in the waters around the Philippines are exceedingly rare, with none recorded in at least a year, according to a global database.
The Russian embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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