Specialist divers launched a new search effort on Tuesday for six missing individuals, including UK tech mogul Mike Lynch and Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer, after their yacht capsized off the coast of Sicily.
The British-flagged yacht, Bayesian, which had 22 people on board including 10 crew members, was anchored approximately 700 meters from the port when it was struck by a waterspout, a mini tornado-like phenomenon, before dawn on Monday. The vessel, a 56-meter luxury sailboat, sank rapidly after being hit by violent weather conditions.
Fifteen survivors, including Lynch’s wife Angela Bacares and a one-year-old baby, were rescued. One man was found dead, and six others, including Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, remain missing. Bloomer and his wife Judy are also among those unaccounted for, along with Christopher Morvillo, Lynch’s lawyer from Clifford Chance.
Divers equipped with oxygen bottles descended to the wreck, located about 50 meters below the sea surface. Initial nighttime searches faced challenges due to restricted access and obstructions within the vessel, according to the fire service.
Lynch, a prominent tech entrepreneur and investor, had recently celebrated his acquittal in a major US fraud case involving his former company Autonomy. The yacht, built by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi and featuring the world’s tallest aluminium mast, was moored off Porticello when strong winds and rains caused it to capsize.
Survivor Charlotte Golunski described the harrowing experience of losing and then recovering her daughter amid the chaos. A waterspout, which is a rotating column of wind and water, is believed to have contributed to the yacht’s rapid sinking.
Authorities have opened an investigation into the incident as recovery efforts continue.
