A British tech mogul named Mike Lynch is missing after his 56-meter super yacht sank in bad weather off the coast of the Italian island of Sicily. Angela Bacares, his wife, has been rescued.
Mike Lynch had asked his lawyers and their families to celebrate a recent court by joining him on his 56-meter boat Bayesian, following his acquittal on fraud charges. The British tech mogul planned to go on a “victory” holiday.
Unfortunately, his sailing trip to beautiful Sicily ended in tragedy just before 5 a.m. on Monday when his super-yacht, which was carrying 10 crew members and 12 guests, was hit by an unexpectedbad weather and flipped over and sank near Palermo.
Expert divers believe that the bodies of the people who haven’t been found may be stuck in the ship’s hull after being locked in their rooms.
“They were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Salvo Cocina, head of Sicily’s public protection agency, late last night. The super yacht allegedly flipped over during the night because of a very strong storm that hit the area.
Angela Bacares, 57, Mr. Lynch’s wife, was one of the people who were saved. She said she remembers that the boat suddenly “tilted” around 4 a.m., and glass started breaking.
An official statement from the Italian Coastguard said that a boat nearby helped people before emergency services arrived.
The Sir Robert BP, a Dutch sailing ship which had been anchored by the Bayesian, is believed to have rescued the 15 survivors.
Karsten Borner, the captain of the boat, described how his vessel was battered by strong gusts, with his team working to stabilise it and manoeuvre it to avoid hitting the Bayesian nearby.
Captain Borner told the BBC, “After the storm was over, we saw that the ship behind us had disappeared.”
Fabio Cefalù, a fisherman, said that he saw a flare from the shore around 4:30 a.m. and went straight to the spot. But by the time he got there, the Bayesian was already underwater, leaving behind only seats, wood, and other things from the super yacht that were floating in the water.
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