PORTICELLO, Sicily (AP) — Rescue teams and divers returned to the scene of a Superyacht sunk by storm off Sicily to search for six people, including British technology magnate Mike Lynchwho are probably still trapped in the hull, 50 meters under water.
Divers loaded a rescue boat at Porticello harbor near Palermo after an initial search ended unsuccessfully on Monday. Firefighters reported that divers were unable to access the cabins below deck because they were blocked by debris that had shifted during the violent storm that capsized the luxury sailboat early Monday.
Fifteen people survived, including a mother who said she held her one-year-old baby over the waves to save him. One body was recovered, officials said.
“Access was limited to the bridge as furnishings blocked the divers’ path,” firefighters said in a statement.
The search was particularly difficult because the ship is lying on the seabed at a depth of 50 meters, which limits the time divers can spend underwater, said fire department spokesman Luca Cari. Therefore, the search is expected to take some time, he told The Associated Press early Tuesday.
The 185-foot British-flagged Bayesian luxury yacht was anchored about half a mile off Ponticello when a storm hit around 4 a.m. Monday. Civil defense officials believe the vessel was hit by an overwater tornado, known as a waterspout, that passed through the area.
Fifteen of the Bayesian’s 22 passengers and crew were able to escape first to a lifeboat and then to a nearby sailboat, the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which was also anchored offshore to wait out the storm, Karsten Borner, the captain of the Baden Powell, told reporters on the scene.
A body belonging to the Bayesian’s cook was recovered nearby.
Among the missing was Lynchwho was once hailed as Britain’s king of technology. In June, he was acquitted of fraud and conspiracy charges in a US federal court case related to the $11 billion acquisition of his company, Autonomy Corp, by Hewlett Packard. His wife, Angela Bacares, survived.
The vacation appeared to be a celebration of sorts after Lynch’s acquittal, and guests included some of the people who had stood by Lynch throughout the ordeal. Among those missing were one of Lynch’s U.S. attorneys, Christopher Morvillo of Clifford Chance, and Morvillo’s wife, according to the Civil Defense Department. Also among the missing were Jonathan Bloomer, the former chairman of Autonomy’s review board who testified at Lynch’s trial, and his wife.
Among the survivors was Charlotte Golunski, who said she briefly lost hold of her one-year-old daughter Sofia in the water but then managed to hold her above the waves until a lifeboat was inflated and they were both pulled to safety, Italian news agency ANSA reported. The father, identified by ANSA as James Emslie, also survived.
Built in 2008 by Italian company Perini Navi, the yacht carried 12 passengers and 10 crew members. According to online charter companies, it was available for charter for 195,000 euros (about $215,000) per week and is notable for its massive 75-meter-high aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.
