Search for Missing Passengers After Yacht Sinking Off Sicily Continues

Search Efforts Continue for Missing Passengers After Yacht Sinking Off Sicily

Deep-sea divers from Italy’s firefighter corps were gearing up to resume their search efforts on Tuesday morning for six passengers who remain unaccounted for following the tragic sinking of a yacht off the coast of Sicily the previous day. Among the missing are a prominent British software entrepreneur and his daughter.

The vessel in question, the British-flagged Bayesian, is a 180-foot sailing yacht that was anchored near the port of Porticello when it encountered a sudden and violent storm, reportedly exacerbated by a waterspout — a phenomenon akin to a small tornado over water. Eyewitnesses described the harrowing scene as the yacht was struck by the intense weather conditions.

Out of the 22 individuals aboard, 15 managed to escape to safety on a life raft and were subsequently rescued by the captain of a nearby sailing cruise ship. Tragically, the body of the yacht’s cook was recovered on Monday, but several others remain missing, as confirmed by Salvatore Cocina, an official with Sicily’s civil protection agency. The missing individuals include:

• Mike Lynch, a British technology entrepreneur, and his daughter Hannah.
• Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley International, and his wife.
• Christopher J. Morvillo, a lawyer at Clifford Chance, and his wife.

In response to the incident, prosecutors in the city of Termini Imerese, situated just east of where the yacht sank, have initiated a formal investigation. The aim is to uncover the circumstances that led to the unfortunate sinking of the vessel.

The search for the missing passengers commenced on Monday but was temporarily halted late at night due to challenging conditions. A statement from the firefighters indicated, “Access limited to the bridge deck, with difficulty due to the presence of furnishings obstructing passage.” The yacht was found lying on its side at a depth of approximately 165 feet, which presents a significant challenge for the divers. They can only enter the wreck for about 12 minutes at a time, as explained by Luca Cari, the spokesman for Italy’s national firefighter corps.

“Obviously, everything has fallen, and the space is extremely cramped,” Mr. Cari stated. The divers are tasked with clearing obstacles, including furnishings and electrical wiring, which are “completely blocking passages.” He emphasized that the operation is exceedingly complicated and fraught with difficulty.