The body of British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, 59, was recovered on Thursday from the wreck of his family yacht, which sank off the coast of Sicily earlier this week during a violent storm. Italian authorities have confirmed that his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, remains missing, with search efforts ongoing.
The tragedy occurred on Monday when the 56-meter (184-foot) superyacht, the Bayesian, sank within minutes after being struck by severe weather while anchored near the port of Porticello, close to Palermo. The yacht, flying a British flag, was carrying 22 passengers and crew members at the time.
Lynch, renowned as one of the UK’s most prominent tech figures, had invited friends on the yacht to celebrate his acquittal in a U.S. fraud trial in June. The disaster has claimed the lives of seven individuals, with 15 survivors, including Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who owns the Bayesian.
Italian officials have also recovered the bodies of Jonathan Bloomer, non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International, and Christopher Morvillo, a lawyer at Clifford Chance, alongside their spouses, Judy Bloomer and Neda Morvillo. Earlier, the body of the onboard chef, Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan national, was found near the wreck.
The search for Hannah Lynch continues, with the possibility that her body may have been swept out to sea. Italian fire brigade spokesperson Luca Cari noted the challenges faced by divers in accessing all areas of the yacht, which lies on its side at a depth of 50 meters (165 feet). The operation has been compared to efforts following the Costa Concordia disaster in 2012, a luxury cruise liner that capsized off the Italian island of Giglio in January 2012, killing 32 people.
A judicial investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the sinking, which has puzzled maritime experts. The Bayesian, built by Italian luxury yacht manufacturer Perini, was regarded as “one of the safest boats in the world” and should have withstood the storm. Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Italian Sea Group, which owns Perini, suggested that the crew may have failed to follow proper safety protocols, leading to the rapid sinking.
The yacht’s captain, James Cutfield, and his surviving crew have not publicly commented on the incident. A press conference has been scheduled for Saturday by the prosecutor leading the investigation, Ambrogio Cartosio, where further details of the ongoing investigation are expected to be disclosed.
The CEO of the Italian Sea Group revealed that the yacht’s automatic tracking system indicated it took just 16 minutes from the onset of the storm to the vessel’s sinking. The investigation will focus on potential issues such as whether any doors or hatches were left open, allowing water to flood the yacht.
The maritime community remains shocked by the incident, given that a Perini-built yacht once survived Hurricane Katrina, a Category 5 storm. The sinking of the Bayesian raises serious questions about what went wrong during the deadly storm off the coast of Sicily.
Melissa Enoch
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