Italy - Sailing yacht sank off Italian coast, 15 rescued, 7 missing, 19 August 2024

[Skigh]

Diver dies working on wreck of sunken super yacht Bayesian

The 39-year-old, who has not been named, was pronounced dead this afternoon, but it was not immediately clear if he was a local or a contractor with the recovery team.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Elley Mae]

Sources close to the Italian investigation claimed British MI6 agents removed sensitive computer equipment and data belonging to Lynch — one of seven people killed in the sea tragedy last August — from the shipwreck, before the Italian authorities started to send divers to recover it this week.

Top secret files which sunk with Bayesian yacht raided by MI6 in James Bond style mission: report

The top secret documents related to yacht owner Mike Lynch’s Darktrace cybersecurity company, which has contracts with UK, US and Israeli intelligence agencies.

nypost.com

 

[Yellowbelly]

Sources close to the Italian investigation claimed British MI6 agents removed sensitive computer equipment and data belonging to Lynch — one of seven people killed in the sea tragedy last August — from the shipwreck, before the Italian authorities started to send divers to recover it this week.

Top secret files which sunk with Bayesian yacht raided by MI6 in James Bond style mission: report

The top secret documents related to yacht owner Mike Lynch’s Darktrace cybersecurity company, which has contracts with UK, US and Israeli intelligence agencies.

nypost.com

New York Post, so caveat emptor. So British Intelligence managed to drive 50m down to a wreck and in pitch darkness find hidden computer drives, all under the noses of the Italian authorities, who've been watching the wreck since it sank. Not buying it, I'm afraid.

 

[Dotta]

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[PrairieWind]

New York Post, so caveat emptor. So British Intelligence managed to drive 50m down to a wreck and in pitch darkness find hidden computer drives, all under the noses of the Italian authorities, who've been watching the wreck since it sank. Not buying it, I'm afraid.

I actually stated long ago that this would happen since there was rumor that NSA material was on that boat. I speculated that the SEALS might be visiting. But SAS could just as easily and there is nothing that authorities monitoring from above would know about it.

 

[Skigh]

Revealed: The 'vulnerabilities' of the Bayesian superyacht

The 184ft vessel capsized off the coast of Sicily last August killing seven including its British billionaire owner Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Preliminary investigations shows that wind speeds of 63.4 knots (73mph) directly on the vessel's beam would 'likely result in the vessel capsizing'.

The interim report that 'vulnerabilities' were 'unknown to either the owner or the crew of Bayesian' as they were not included in the stability information book carried on board.

Andrew Moll, Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents, said: 'The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over.

'Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70 degree the situation was irrecoverable.'

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Bayesian's builders The Italian Sea Group, has previously said the sinking was 'down to human error' and insisted that it was 'unsinkable'.

 

[RedHaus]

In addition to @Skigh's posted news from the DM, this The Times article is fascinating and full of new nuggets, presuming they are accurate.

While most MSM reporting on the May 14, 2025 iterim report by the Italian Marine Accident Investigation Branch, cover likely yacht design flaws, this article eludes to possible crew errors.

"... With winds increasing, the captain decided to motor... to the more sheltered area of Porticello... As they arrived at about 9.30pm, another yacht, Sir Robert Baden Powell, lay at anchor near by."

"There was a faint breeze and the sea was calm, but thunderstorms were forecast and lightning flickered in the distance."

"As he turned in, James Cutfield, the captain, told his crew to wake him if winds rose above 20 knots or if there were signs the anchor was not holding."

I wonder what time this was?

"Matthew Griffiths, the deckhand on watch, recorded wind speeds of 8 knots."

I'm curious what time this was?

"He filmed the flashing sky on his phone and posted it on social media at 3.55am."

Why was Griffiths posting on SM given these data likely indicated worsening conditions?

"The wind picked up, hitting 30 knots,..."

When was this precisely?

And when did the wind speed hit 20 knots, the captain's threshold for being woken?

Was wind speed > 20 knots before Griffith's SM post at 3:55am? or after his SM post?

"...and by 3.57am Griffiths thought the yacht was dragging its anchor..."

So, given the captain's order, why didn't Griffiths wake the captain immediately?

"A few minutes later, at 4:00am, [Griffiths] woke Cutfield [the captain]..."

The obvious question is why the delay?

Because, as you can read on your own, this article details how rapidly things deteriorated after 4:00am. The captain apparently rapidly ran out of time to course correct and rouse all passengers.

It truly is a harrowing story told here.

So, IMO, there may be a 'micro' time table to piece together by the investigations as to what Griffiths was or was not doing between 3:50 and 4:00am.

I now wonder if the outcome would have been the same if Griffiths acted sooner.

ET: tighten text

 

[SouthAussie]

The UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), leading the international investigation, said winds of over 80mph "violently" hit the vessel, causing it to flood within seconds.

Investigators say the yacht was knocked to a 90-degree angle within 15 seconds at 04:06 am local time, causing people, furniture and loose items to fall across the deck.

"There was no indication of flooding inside Bayesian until water came in over the starboard rails and, within seconds, entered the internal spaces down the stairwells," the report says.

Wind speed was "no more than eight knots (9mph)" at 03:00 - about an hour before the incident. Some 55 minutes later it had increased to 30 knots (34.5mph), and it had accelerated to 70 knots (80.6mph) by 04:06 when the yacht capsized.

Five people were injured "either by falling or from things falling on them" and the deck hand was "thrown into the sea", the report says.

Two of the yacht's guests used furniture drawers "as an improvised ladder" to escape their cabin, it adds.

"The priorities for the crew would have been to shut the hatches and the doors, which they did," he told the BBC.

This means speculation about water flooding in because everything was open is "obviously not the case".

Bayesian crew unaware wind speeds of over 73mph could topple yacht, report finds

Investigators say 80mph winds "violently" knocked over the vessel, causing it to flood within seconds.

www.bbc.com

 

[RedHaus]

Here is a fantastic reconstruction of the events / timeline of the Baysian's sinking published by Yacht News (YT).

Paraphrasing two key points made:

1. The deckhands assigned to the night watch at sequential intervals were "unqualified" (possibly unable to read or operate requisite controls) for the night watch role, per commercial standards (this was a private operation).

2. The Bayesian operating manual provided by the manufacturer did not describe the high wind (64+ knots) vulnerabilities of the yacht - that it would not be able to right side if it heeled more than 70° (it heeled 90°) - much less than more traditionally designed superyachts (e.g. two masts).

IMO

p.s. correction to my prior post - the iterim report was from a UK not Italian investigation agency.

ETA: two key points

 

[Dotta]

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[RedHaus]

FWIW... raising of the Bayesian now scheduled for later this month.

Bayesian yacht that sank off Sicily killing 7 to be raised in late June under updated recovery plan

A salvage company plans to lift the luxury yacht Bayesian in late June from the Sicilian seabed where it sank last summer, killing seven people.

apnews.com

 

[PrairieWind]

FWIW... raising of the Bayesian now scheduled for later this month.

Bayesian yacht that sank off Sicily killing 7 to be raised in late June under updated recovery plan

A salvage company plans to lift the luxury yacht Bayesian in late June from the Sicilian seabed where it sank last summer, killing seven people.

apnews.com

This will be really interesting to see take place.

 

[Skigh]

Doomed superyacht Bayesian will be brought to the surface within days

Doomed super yacht Bayesian will be seen for the first time on Saturday as a mammoth £20 million operation to bring her to the surface begins.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Kittypoo]

Doomed superyacht Bayesian will be brought to the surface within days

Doomed super yacht Bayesian will be seen for the first time on Saturday as a mammoth £20 million operation to bring her to the surface begins.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Will be following progress will be interested to know who foots the £20 million bill. Would insurance cover this?

 

[SouthAussie]

Will be following progress will be interested to know who foots the £20 million bill. Would insurance cover this?

Yes, it sounds as though insurance is going to cover it.


Francesco Dubbioso, country manager for Italy for insurer Alta Signa Europe, who estimated the superyacht's value at $30 million to $40 million, noted that P&I insurance would also cover the recovery of the Bayesian.

The protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance, which typically covers third-party liability claims such as environmental damage, injury, and death, was provided by British Marine.
Insurance sources suggest that the hull was likely insured for around $40 million, while the P&I cover would be significantly larger.

Superyacht disaster: How much the capsized vessel may cost insurers - Times of India

Europe News: The sinking of the Bayesian superyacht near Sicily resulted in the deaths of seven people, including Mike Lynch. Insurance payouts could exceed $150 m

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

[Skigh]

Moment Mike Lynch's Bayesian superyacht is raised from the seabed

The white top and blue hull of the 56-meter (184-foot) Bayesian emerged from the depths of the sea in a holding area of a yellow floating crane barge.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[bmacmillan1]

Moment Mike Lynch's Bayesian superyacht is raised from the seabed

The white top and blue hull of the 56-meter (184-foot) Bayesian emerged from the depths of the sea in a holding area of a yellow floating crane barge.

www.dailymail.co.uk

This is a mammoth salvage task.
Sad seeing it, seems relatively intact and therefore almost unbelievable it happened.

 

[PrairieWind]

Wow, that is amazing. And incredibly sad as well.

 

[Dotta]

Bayesian emerges from the waves

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"Aspokesman for TMC Maritime, conducting the recovery operation,
had previously said
the vessel has been slowly raised from the seabed, 165-feet down,
over the past three days to allow the steel lifting straps, slings and harnesses to be secured under the keel.

What became visible for the first time Friday on the surface of the water
was the top of the passenger area of the Bayesian where passengers would sit,
known as the accommodation area,
said a spokesman for TMC Maritime, David Wilson.

'She will remain half submerged until Saturday
when the final lift will take place
and she will then be sailed to a specially built cradle on the dockside'."

 

[Skigh]

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