Why did the yacht “Bayesian” sink? Weather expert Jörg Kachelmann complains that the crew should have been prepared for the storm in Italy.
Palermo – “We didn’t see it coming,” is the only statement made by “Bayesian” captain James Catfield so far. After the tragic yacht accident in Sicily, questions are piling up. How could the sailing ship be hit by a tornado so unexpectedly? It is also unclear why the ship was anchored half a nautical mile off the coast of Italy during the storm.
Yacht “Bayesian” anchored off Sicily during storm – Kachelmann convinced: “Nobody was surprised”
The video from a surveillance camera shows how the “Bayesian” sank in less than two minutes during the storm. “It all happened very quickly,” recalls the German captain Karsten Börner, who was in the immediate vicinity with the “Sir Robert Baden Powell” and who saved 15 survivors from drowning.
Were the crew and passengers of the luxury yacht surprised by the storm while they were sleeping? Weather expert Jörg Kachelmann does not agree with this explanation. “No, of course nobody was sleeping and no, nothing was ‘surprising’,” writes the meteorologist on X (Twitter).
“Negligence”: Kachelmann compares yacht accident in Italy with Costa Concordia cruise disaster
Kachelmann cannot understand why the “Bayesian” was not prepared for the storm. “All computer models predicted strong thunderstorms in the area around Porticello on Sunday (18 August, dR),” he explains, adding: “The extent of negligence that the ship was there is of Schettinsque proportions.”
By “Schettin-like dimensions,” Kachelmann is obviously referring to Francesco Schettino, the captain who was blamed for the Costa Concordia disaster in 2012. Schettino became known as “Captain Coward” because he was one of the first to leave the cruise ship after it hit a rock while he was in command. 32 people died in the disaster and Schettino was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Thunderstorms broke out off Sicily at 2.45 a.m.: Should the crew of the “Bayesian” have reacted?
Even if the crew had “refused” to pay attention to the weather forecast, they would have had to wake up long before the storm, according to Kachelmann. According to weather data, the first thunderstorms broke out off Palermo at around 2:45 a.m., and the yacht sank at around 4 a.m. “There is still enough time to do everything for the worst-case scenario, which will undoubtedly happen,” said the meteorologist.
![At around 2.45 a.m. the first thunderstorm swept over the coast of Sicily: Actually loud enough to wake the crew of the “Bayesian”, Jörg Kachelmann suspects.](https://www.merkur.de/assets/images/35/397/35397036-gegen-45-fegte-das-erste-gewitter-ueber-die-kueste-von-sizilien-eigentlich-laut-genug-um-die-crew-der-bayesian-zu-wecken-vermutet-joerg-kachelmann-1WGz9E6YqdBG.jpg)
Some media from Italy suspect that the “Bayesian” was unable to release its anchors in time, which can have catastrophic consequences in the event of a storm. The proximity to the coast was also problematic. “On the open sea, a ship can generally weather extreme weather situations better than close to land, where waves are more likely to break in shallower water and endanger the ship,” explains boat builder Jan Maas to the FAZDeep sea expert Philippe Epelbaum describes IPPEN.MEDIAthat a large wave that washed too much water on board could have led to the rapid sinking of the “Bayesian”.
What led to the boat accident off Sicily? Kachelmann hopes for investigations into negligent homicide
Kachelmann apparently does not think it is sufficient to speak of a storm accident off the coast of Sicily. He warns: “We can only hope for a public prosecutor who is familiar with negligent homicide and who will help to ensure that something like this does not happen again. It should never have happened.” At least one man was killed when the luxury yacht sank, and six people are still missing, including British tech billionaire Mike Lynch. (moe)
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