A British diver has been found dead inside a cave in southwestern France, two days after going missing.

The unnamed 43-year-old entered Gouffre de Saint-Sauveur, a natural pool near the village of Cales, in Dordogne, on Friday afternoon – but never resurfaced.

The man was part of a group of eight experienced British cave divers, who raised the alarm at 8pm after going back and searching for him, La Depeche reported.

A team of specialist divers, firefighters and gendarmes were deployed, with searches continuing through Saturday night and Sunday.

Mayor of Cales Jean-Francois Poncelet said on Saturday there was still hope that he may have found an air chamber, located about 260 feet below the surface, and taken refuge there.

When divers reached the chamber on Saturday and searched it, there was no sign of him. His body was eventually discovered late on Sunday, at a depth of around 280ft, but is yet to be recovered from the cave.

Public prosecutor Clara Ribeiro said that “a new attempt will take place very soon”. She explained that the characteristics of the site were making recovery particularly difficult.

An investigation into the victim’s death has since been opened. Ribeiro had earlier described the man as very experienced and said he had entered the cave with enough oxygen for about eight hours, according to Diventures Magazine.

An additional cylinder had also been prepared as part of the dive plan but was later found unused.

Gouffre de Saint-Sauveur is a resurgence of the Ouysse river and is a recognised cave-diving site.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who has been reported missing and are in contact with the local authorities.”

Earlier this year, five Italian divers died during an underwater cave expedition in the Maldives. They were exploring the caves at a depth of around 200ft in Vaavu Atoll, which is about 40 miles from the capital Malé.