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Live updates: Seven dead in 56m superyacht Bayesian sinking tragedy

Seven people have died in the Bayesian sinking disaster. These include the six missing people who were inside the yacht when it sank, as well as a seventh person who was located shortly after the disaster. The seventh person is understood to be the yacht's chef, Recaldo Thomas. The other six are:

• British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, once dubbed 'Britain's Bill Gates'
• Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah
• Morgan Stanley's chairman, Jonathan Bloomer
• Judy Bloomer, wife of Morgan Stanley chairman
• Chris Morvillo, a lawyer working for London-based law firm Clifford Chance
• Neda Morvillo, an American jewellery designer and Chris' wife

It is understood that the yacht was being used to celebrate Lynch's recent victory in a 13-year £8 billion fraud acquittal.

No one remembers the mast snapping before 56m superyacht Bayesian sunk, says crew

No one recalls seeing the mast snap on board the 56-metre Perini Navi sailing yacht Bayesian which sank off the Italian island of Sicily on 19 August. The eyewitness account of a crewmember on board the vessel, which was obtained by BOAT International , said that the boat was struck by a freak weather event which led to the yacht heeling at around 20 degrees to starboard. As crewmembers were securing items, the heeling angle began to increase rapidly until the yacht started taking on water and sank rapidly.

The crewmembers who were up on deck were able to evacuate the yacht with minor injuries. The yacht is understood to have sunk in just twelve minutes, and it is believed that a "major ingress" of water from the top down would have caused the sinking, according to a captain who wishes to remain anonymous. This is based on the fact that no breaches have been reported in the yacht's hull, and the fact that the yacht should have been able to remain afloat with two flooded compartments.

"Very difficult to understand what could have overwhelmed a vessel of that size" says captain of sistership

The captain of the sistership to the sunken 56-metre Perini Navi sailing yacht Bayesian has said it is "very difficult to understand what could have overwhelmed a vessel of that size" and called the 56-metre Perini Navi series "bulletproof".

David Hutchinson, captain of Rosehearty , said he had taken the yacht around the world multiple times and he had "total faith in the boat".  "We've been to Antarctica and Chile, and we've had her in 70 knots of wind," he says, and the vessel had never put them in a situation that felt unmanageable.

However, Hutchinson noted there were differences between Bayesian and Rosehearty ; notably, Bayesian's  74-metre mast, which would have been heavier and added increased windage. The yacht's layout was also different, with guest accommodation on Bayesian located further forward.

Live updates

• During a news conference on Saturday morning (24 August), prosecutors confirmed they are in the early stages of investigating a "crime hypothesis" of culpable shipwreck and manslaughter. Authorities also said the yacht likely sunk because of a downburst (powerful wind that descends from a thunderstorm), rather than a waterspout.
• A search and rescue for six missing people has concluded. The final missing person is understood to be Hannah Lynch. 
• According to Reuters, six bodies have now been found in the sunken yacht. These include Mike Lynch, a British technology entrepreneur who co-founded Autonomy Corporation and founded Invoke Capital, although Italian authorities have not confirmed this.  
• One person was found immediately after the yacht sunk, and this is understood to be the yacht's chef. 
• Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, and a one-year-old are among the fifteen people rescued along with Bayesian' s captain, James Cutfield.
• Another sailing vessel in the area, the 42-metre Sir Robert Baden Powell ,  stepped in to offer assistance in the initial rescue.
• Divers have been able to reach Bayesian' s sunken hull, which lies at 45 metres of depth about half a mile from the coast. The yacht had the largest aluminium masts of any sailing yacht on the water.
• Eyewitnesses in the area reported "hurricane" conditions off the coast but local weather websites did not indicate any severe squall, which suggests that the weather event was not forecast.
• At around 5am local time on 19 August, Bayesian was hit by bad weather and sunk.  The sailing yacht was anchored or idle at the time of the incident.

Built in Italy by renowned builder Perini Navi and delivered in 2008, the yacht's naval architecture was developed by Ron Holland Design while the interior design is by Rémi Tessier . She was formerly known as Salute and was last refitted in 2016. She was listed for sale earlier this year, according to BOATPro . The yacht had accommodation for nine guests and 12 crew.

BOAT International will update the story as it develops.

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Family clings to hope of air pocket in sunken superyacht as debris hampers search

PORTICELLO, Sicily — Divers searching for six missing people from a superyacht which sank off the coast of Sicily told NBC News Wednesday that debris inside the vessel, as well as its depth, were making their job difficult.  

As hopes of finding anyone alive dwindled, the divers said that they had managed to force open one of the Bayesian’s access doors but access to the cabins where people could be trapped was being hampered by detritus. 

The divers, who were not authorized to speak publicly, added that the depth of the wreck meant they were left with only 10 minutes to search the 184-foot yacht once they reached it. Then they had to return to the surface, they said. 

On Wednesday, the dock where they set off from was swarming with vehicles, boats and rescuers. Nearby tourists, reporters and photographers have gathered, eager for news. Helicopters occasionally fly over the area.  

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and five of the 22 other people who were aboard the yacht remain unaccounted for and are believed to be trapped in the Bayesian’s hull, nearly 170 feet underwater.

Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah; Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda, are also missing. 

Officials confirmed Monday that at least one person, the ship’s cook, had died. 

Rescuers said Tuesday that there might be people trapped inside the cabins, especially considering the timing of the storm, but that they had so far been unable to check through the ship’s portholes.

“The operations are long and complex,” Italy’s national fire department, whose diving teams have been participating in the search, said on X . 

Italy's coast guard also said Tuesday that divers were also using a remotely-operated underwater vehicle to aid in the search.

The Bayesian is owned by a firm linked to Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who was one of the 15 people rescued Monday after it capsized near Sicily’s main city of Palermo in what Italian officials called a “violent storm.” 

Built by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi in 2008, the U.K.-registered Bayesian could carry 12 guests and a crew of up to 10, according to online specialist yacht sites. Its nearly 250-foot mast is the tallest aluminum sailing mast in the world, according to CharterWorld Luxury Yacht Charters.  

Lynch, who was regularly described in U.K. media as “Britain’s Bill Gates,” was acquitted by a San Francisco jury of fraud charges stemming from the 2011 sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion.

Prosecutors alleged that Lynch and Autonomy’s vice president for finance, Stephen Chamberlain, had padded the firm’s finances ahead of the sale. Lynch’s lawyers argued that HP was so eager to acquire Autonomy that it failed to adequately check the books .

The Mediterranean sailing vacation was designed to be a celebration for Lynch, who brought Morvillo, one of his U.S. lawyers and Bloomer, who testified in his defense, on the trip.

Bloomer’s twin brother, Jeremy, told the BBC on Tuesday the family was “coping the best we can” and he was hopeful there might still be air pockets inside the hull. 

Chamberlain was not aboard the Bayesian.

In what appears to be a tragic coincidence, a car struck and killed Chamberlain on Saturday as he was jogging in a village about 68 miles north of London, local police said.

Claudio Lavanga and Claudia Rizzo reported from Porticello and Yuliya Talmazan from London. 

Claudio Lavanga is Rome-based foreign correspondent for NBC News.

Yuliya Talmazan is a reporter for NBC News Digital, based in London.

Sailing yachts like Mike Lynch's are 'unsinkable bodies', CEO of boat manufacturing firm says

Bayesian superyacht which sank off Italy is an "unsinkable" vessel, Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, said.

By Ashna Hurynag, news correspondent and Eleonora Chiarella, producer

Sunday 25 August 2024 08:48, UK

Vessels like Mike Lynch's stricken superyacht are "unsinkable", according to the chief executive of the firm which makes and sells them.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, told Sky News there are no flaws with the design and construction of the Bayesian superyacht which capsized in a storm off the coast of Porticello, Sicily, on Monday.

Five bodies were found by divers on Wednesday - taking the number of confirmed dead to six.

The Italian Sea Group also owns the firm that built British tech tycoon Mr Lynch's Bayesian, and Mr Costantino said the vessels "are the safest in the most absolute sense".

"Being the manufacturer of Perini [boats], I know very well how the boats have always been designed and built," he said.

"And as Perini is a sailing ship... sailing ships are renowned to be the safest ever."

He said their structure and keel made them "unsinkable bodies".

Read more on this story: Why search of superyacht wreck has been so difficult Hero mum 'slept with baby on deck when storm sank yacht'

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Mr Costantino said news of the sinking "put me in a state of sadness on one side and of disbelief on the other".

"This incident sounds like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact," he said.

It is understood Italian prosecutors investigating the incident are continuing to hold interviews with the survivors.

On Tuesday they questioned the captain for more than two hours to help reconstruct what happened and provide useful technical details.

Four British inspectors are also in Porticello and have begun a preliminary assessment of events.

It is understood they will look at all relevant aspects of the incident, including the design, stability, and operation of the vessel. They will also examine the effects of the weather conditions experienced.

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Twenty-two people were on board the vessel, 15 of whom were rescued - including Briton Charlotte Golunski and her one-year-old daughter Sofia.

Divers will resume efforts on Thursday morning to bring ashore a body they found earlier. One more person remains missing.

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In Maine, a Father-Daughter Team Wins a Lobster Boat Race

Jeremy Beal, a boat builder and lobsterman, had a simple strategy: “Point it and punch it!” His 14-year-old daughter took it from there.

By Steven Kurutz

Reporting from Long Island, Maine.

Dozens of boats zipped across Casco Bay during the Maine Lobster Boat Races on Saturday. Only one had a purple bottom.

That boat, a 32-footer with a powerful diesel engine, belonged to Jeremy Beal, 45, a large, soft-spoken man who comes from a long line of boat builders and lobstermen.

“See, I grew up right in it,” he said between drags of a cigarette while leaning against the rail of his boat on the evening before the big race.

For decades, Mr. Beal’s father, Wayne Beal, and an uncle, Calvin Beal, have built boats used by commercial fishers up and down the Maine coast. After years spent learning the family trade, Jeremy took over his dad’s business, Wayne Beal’s Boat Shop, in Jonesport, a seaside town more than 200 miles northeast of Portland.

“I bought the boat off my father,” Mr. Beal said. “It was his last power boat. He’s retired out of the boat shop. I won’t sell the boat unless I have to. Just for the fact that it was my dad’s.”

To pay off the boat, Mr. Beal has returned part-time to lobster fishing, something he first started doing at age 6. This summer he has been helped by his 14-year-old daughter, Mariena Beal, who will enter ninth grade at Jonesport-Beals High School next month.

Together, father and daughter have been dropping 250 traps into the Gulf of Maine to catch thousands of the large lobsters prized around the world for their meat. They split whatever money is left after paying for the bait (herring, mostly), fuel and the monthly boat bill.

Mr. Beal said he hoped the experience would teach his daughter both financial responsibility and the family’s way of life on the water. But Mariena didn’t quite get her way when it came to the color of the boat.

“She wanted a pink bottom, but I wouldn’t let that fly,” he said.

The pair hit on purple as a compromise. And Mariena got to name the boat — My Turn, she called it.

When they are not hauling up traps, Mr. Beal and his daughter have been competing on the lobster boat racing circuit, an annual series of summertime competitions along the Maine coast. The events, run by the Maine Lobster Boat Racing Association, are essentially drag races — the fastest boat wins.

“I’ve always been a competitor,” Mr. Beal said.

He summarized his racing strategy: “Point it and punch it!”

Two days before the recent race, Mr. Beal unloaded the buckets of herring he keeps on deck. He lugged out the lobster crates and the 55-gallon plastic drums that store the catch. Finally, he took a scrub brush and washed down the deck with Dawn dish soap.

On Friday morning, after waking early and packing sandwiches for lunch, Mr. Beal charted a scenic southwesterly course from Jonesport. Alone on deck, he took in the sight of the rocky coastline and marine life, including porpoises. His wife and daughters, including Mariena, drove the 200 miles separately in a car.

It took Mr. Beal just under five hours to sail to Long Island, one of Maine’s Casco Bay islands that lie a few miles from Portland. Many of its 230 residents work on boats or own one.

A crowd had gathered for a cookout at the old boathouse on Wharf Street when Mr. Beal moored his vessel. Men and women were eating hamburgers, drinking beer and lining up to buy race merchandise from Lisa Kimball, an islander who co-chairs the race. The proceeds were going toward a scholarship fund for children on the island.

Mr. Beal made the rounds. Several of the partygoers had bought their boats from him or his father. The price of lobsters was solid this year, everyone agreed, though the catch varied from “good” to “horrible,” depending on who you asked.

Adam Kimball, Ms. Kimball’s husband, planned to race the next day. He works on an oil tanker in Alaska, but you don’t need a commercial fishing license to compete — so long as you have a typical lobster boat, which he does.

“It’s a lot of money to spend for not a lot of return,” Mr. Kimball, 46, said with a laugh.

He was referring to the modest prize money, usually a few hundred dollars, and to the way some boat owners invest thousands to gain horsepower and perhaps a knot or two in speed.

“They call it ‘gooning up’ the engine,” Mr. Kimball said. “There are some risks to that. Like you blow it up.”

Mr. Beal spotted one of the modern legends of the lobster boat racing.

“Stevie Johnson,” he said. “Now there’s a real character.”

Mr. Johnson, the proprietor of Johnson’s Boatyard on Long Island, is known for building unusual boats , some with automobiles mounted on the hulls. One of them, the “Vette-Boat,” features a 1984 Corvette on a 28-foot hull. Mr. Johnson has won his share of races on his tricked-out vessels over the years, but their main purpose is “to cause a scene,” he likes to say.

Dressed in a blue Hawaiian-print shirt, blue board shorts and Crocs, and nursing Canadian Club whiskey and ginger ale in a red plastic cup, Mr. Johnson, who is in his 70s, was trailed by a small entourage at the cookout.

It was getting late. Mr. Beal untied his boat and sailed over to Portland, where a friend was letting him dock while in town.

Mariena had missed the cookout — she was at the Maine Mall, the largest shopping plaza in the state, doing some back-to-school shopping with her mother. The next day, she would be at the wheel of My Turn.

“She’s like me,” Mr. Beal said. “She likes to go fast.”

And the Winner Is …

She also likes to shop. Mariena and her family members missed the noonish start time of the races on Saturday because they had gotten stuck in traffic after spending the morning back at the mall.

Mr. Beal stood at the wheel of My Turn, engine idling, listening to an announcer call the first few races over a marine radio.

At quarter to one, Mariena came bounding down the dock and onto the boat. She wore black shorts, a white North Face long-sleeved top and leather sandals. Her toenails were painted purple, matching the color of her nose ring and the bottom of My Turn.

Like her father, Mariena was reserved. Asked what she liked about racing lobster boats, she replied, “Everything.”

She was joined on the boat by her mother, Maria Beal; her boyfriend, Caleb Geel; her older sister, Caitlin Childers; and Caitlin’s boyfriend, Nick Guptill.

Mr. Beal gunned the throttle and sped toward Long Island. By now, dozens of pleasure crafts and lobster boats were on the water. A crowd of spectators stood at the ferry dock.

Mr. Beal pulled up to the large boat where officials kept watch over the day’s races through binoculars. His passengers disembarked, leaving My Turn for the so-called committee boat.

Then Mr. Beal and Mariena motored toward the starting line, which was nearly a mile north. Once they were among the other boats in their race category — the G classification race, for boats from 28 to 35 feet in length with diesel engines — Mariena took the wheel.

The committee boat was like a floating party, with coolers of food and drinks. Jon Johansen, the bearded president of Maine Lobster Racing, and the publisher of Maine Coastal News , which covers the races, used a telephoto lens to call out the action.

On board, Maria Beal told a story.

Well into the time she was pregnant with Mariena, she said, she had done a lot of lobstering with her husband. That meant hauling up heavy traps to the point that she ruptured her placenta. The doctors thought she would lose the baby.

”But I went to bed for two weeks and it healed up,” Maria said. “And that’s why we named her Mariena — it means ‘lover of the sea.’”

It was now time for the G classification race.

The lead boat was a speck on the water. As it came closer, you could make out its purple bottom leaving a white-capped wake and all the other boats behind it.

Mariena had won, easily. The Beal contingent whooped and cheered.

“She doesn’t have much fear,” her mother said. “Never has. She’s been looking for speed since she was born.”

My Turn sidled up to the committee boat. Amy Tierney, a race co-chair, handed over an envelope of prize money. Mariena was $200 richer.

What did she plan to do with her winnings?

She smiled.

Steven Kurutz covers cultural trends, social media and the world of design for The Times. More about Steven Kurutz

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