Five scuba divers had to be pulled from the water off Ċirkewwa in northern Malta after strong currents left them struggling near the Rożi wreck on a Friday afternoon.
Rescue Coordination Centre RCC Malta scrambled a multi-agency response, with boats from the Armed Forces of Malta joined by the Civil Protection Department and the Malta Red Cross. All five were recovered safely and taken to medical staff from Mater Dei Hospital for checks. Sources quoted by local media described the sea state as very rough, with currents pushing divers away from the shore.
Things got briefly confusing during the operation. Early reports suggested eight divers had been rescued, but the AFM later clarified the picture: five had genuinely been in trouble, while a second group of divers in the same area had simply been unaccounted for. When rescuers located them, that group turned out to be fine and needed no assistance. The armed forces confirmed the details in a statement on Facebook.
The Rożi itself is a piece of diving history. The former Maltese tugboat was scuttled off Ċirkewwa in 1992 and has grown into one of the island's most popular recreational dive sites, sitting within easy reach of the harbour and known for its accessible depths and resident marine life. Ċirkewwa, at Malta's northern tip, is also the ferry jump-off point for Gozo, so the area sees heavy dive traffic year-round.
The incident is a useful reminder for anyone booking a dive trip to Malta. Even well-established, close-to-shore wreck sites can turn hazardous fast, especially when currents pick up, and rescue operations here depend on a quick response from the armed forces and volunteer crews. Checking conditions with local dive centres, sticking to briefed plans and surfacing with a marker buoy all matter as much in Malta's calm-looking summer water as anywhere else.