The dead on board the luxury yacht “Bayesian” have all been recovered. The question now is why the sailing yacht sank so quickly and so many passengers died. The public prosecutor’s office is investigating.
Palermo – After the sinking of the luxury yacht “Bayesian” off the coast of Sicily, the public prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into multiple negligent homicides. This is to clarify whether the sailing ship may have sunk because the danger of an approaching storm was underestimated. So far, however, the investigations are not specifically directed against the captain or other members of the crew.
In the accident on Monday near the shore of the Italian Mediterranean island, seven people were killed, including British billionaire Mike Lynch. 15 people were rescued, including almost the entire crew. The extremely wealthy software entrepreneur Lynch had wanted to celebrate an acquittal in court on the sailing trip with family, friends and business partners.
Investigators: Yacht hit by gust
According to investigators, the “Bayesian” was hit by a gust of wind early in the morning in a storm with wind speeds of more than 100 kilometers per hour, which then led to its sinking within a few minutes. Public prosecutor Raffaele Cammarano said at a press conference in Palermo: “It was a sudden, abrupt event.” However, other captains in the region had previously brought their boats to safety.
According to the German Weather Service, downdrafts occur when cold air falls in a thunderstorm, hits the ground and spreads out in a linear direction. Up close, they often look like a “white wall” that moves extremely quickly. They often cause even more damage than tornadoes.
Rescue could take weeks
The investigators hope to get information from the so-called black box of the 56-meter-long luxury yacht, which has not yet been discovered. In addition, the public prosecutor’s office wants to wait for the ship to be salvaged before expanding the investigation, which could take several weeks. The 500-ton yacht – one of the largest sailing ships in the world – lies on the seabed one kilometer from the small harbor of Porticello at a depth of 50 meters.
However, the public prosecutor’s office did not rule out the possibility that some of those involved might be entered by name in a register of suspects beforehand. This would give them access to the files under Italian law. Public prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio said: “Nothing can be rushed. You have to understand who is responsible for a crime. This can affect the captain and crew as well as the manufacturer.”
Sister says goodbye with touching words
In particular, the question is why all crew members survived, with the exception of the ship’s cook, but only half of the twelve passengers. It is suspected that the victims were surprised in their cabins while they were sleeping and were unable to free themselves. There is also talk of a party the night before. According to investigators, no alcohol tests were carried out on the survivors.
Meanwhile, Lynch’s daughter Esme said goodbye to her younger sister Hannah (18) with touching words. “She is my little angel, my heroine,” the family said in a statement. “Hannah often burst into my bedroom and lay down next to me. Sometimes she beamed, sometimes she was cheeky, sometimes she asked for advice. No matter what happened, she brought me boundless love.” Esme was not on board. Her mother survived the accident.
Lynch himself was one of the richest Britons. He made billions by selling his software company to the US company Hewlett Packard. The takeover turned out to be a flop, which led to lengthy legal disputes. However, a court recently acquitted Lynch. dpa
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