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Sunk Superyacht Likely to Cost Insurers at Least $150 Million, Experts Say

FILE PHOTO: Bayesian, a 56-meter-long sailboat, which later sank off the Sicilian capital Palermo, is seen in Santa Flavia, Italy August 18, 2024 in this picture obtained from social media. Baia Santa Nicolicchia/Fabio La Bianca/via REUTERS/File Photo

By Noor Zainab Hussain and Carolyn Cohn

LONDON (Reuters) - Insurers of the Bayesian superyacht that sank this month, killing tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and six others, could be on the hook for at least $150 million, according to the first estimates by industry experts.

The British-flagged 56-metre-long (184-foot-long) yacht, which the experts estimated cost around $40 million, capsized and went down on Aug. 19 within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off northern Sicily.

The superyacht's hull was insured against physical damage by yacht insurance provider OMAC and a consortium of insurers including Travelers Companies Inc, Navium Marine and Convex, Reuters reported last week.

Its protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance, which typically covers third-party liability claims including for environmental damage, injury and death, was provided by British Marine.

The hull was likely insured for around $40 million, while the P&I cover would be larger, insurance sources said.

"Our understanding is that the cost of the boat was between $40 and $50 million, so the limit of the hull & machinery policy was probably around those values," said Marcos Alvarez, managing director, global financial institution ratings at Morningstar DBRS.

The P&I policy would likely be "several multiples" of the hull policy, or $200-300 million, Alvarez added, noting it would also likely cover liability payments even if the captain or crew are found to be negligent.

Prosecutors in the town of Termini Imerese, near Palermo, are investigating the captain and two other crew members. An investigation does not imply guilt or mean formal charges will follow. Prosecutors have said the probe would take time and require salvaging the wreck.

Oscar Seikaly, CEO of broker NSI Insurance Group, that provides yacht insurance, estimated the hull value at $40-70 million, but said P&I cover might not total more than $100 million.

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

Reuters is the first to report the potential insurance costs. OMAC, Travelers and Navium Marine did not immediately respond to Reuters' for comment. Convex declined to comment.

The Bayesian disaster, which has puzzled experts who said the boat would have been built to withstand a severe storm, adds to recent woes for yacht insurers, who have faced a raft of hurricane losses in the past few years.

Premium rates have risen by four to five times in the past couple of years in parts of the U.S. and the Caribbean, and yacht insurers have cut the amount of cover they provide because of the risks, Seikaly said.

As a result, insurers have increased rates and re-evaluated their guidelines and risk appetite, according to industry experts.

As well as hurricanes, insured losses have mostly stemmed from severe storms, floods, and other weather events in North America, the Caribbean, and Europe, according to a report by broker Marsh.

Seikaly said four clients had last week been ready to buy boats but changed their minds because of the high cost of insurance.

Climate change was also likely to add to yacht insurers' worries, Seikaly added, as it throws up more unexpected events.

"Whoever thought a storm in the Mediterranean in the month of August is going to sink a ship?"

(Additional reporting by Sinead Cruise; editing by Michelle Price and Sandra Maler)

Copyright 2024 Thomson Reuters .

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Sunken Superyacht Likely to Cost Insurers at Least $150 Million, Experts Say

Insurers of the Bayesian superyacht that sank this month, killing tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and six others, could be on the hook for at least $150 million, according to the first estimates by industry experts.

The British-flagged 56-meter-long (184-foot-long) yacht, which the experts estimated cost around $40 million, capsized and went down on Aug. 19 within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off northern Sicily.

The superyacht’s hull was insured against physical damage by yacht insurance provider OMAC and a consortium of insurers including Travelers Cos. Inc., Navium Marine, and Convex, Reuters reported last week.

Yacht Insurer OMAC Is Hull Carrier for Yacht Sunk Off Sicily, Sources Say

Its protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance, which typically covers third-party liability claims including for environmental damage, injury and death, was provided by British Marine.

The hull was likely insured for around $40 million, while the P&I cover would be larger, insurance sources said.

“Our understanding is that the cost of the boat was between $40 and $50 million, so the limit of the hull & machinery policy was probably around those values,” said Marcos Alvarez, managing director, global financial institution ratings at Morningstar DBRS.

The P&I policy would likely be “several multiples” of the hull policy, or $200-300 million, Alvarez added, noting it would also likely cover liability payments even if the captain or crew are found to be negligent.

Prosecutors in the town of Termini Imerese, near Palermo, are investigating the captain and two other crew members. An investigation does not imply guilt or mean formal charges will follow. Prosecutors have said the probe would take time and require salvaging the wreck.

Oscar Seikaly, CEO of broker NSI Insurance Group, that provides yacht insurance, estimated the hull value at $40-70 million, but said P&I cover might not total more than $100 million.

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

Reuters is the first to report the potential insurance costs. OMAC, Travelers and Navium Marine did not immediately respond to Reuters’ for comment. Convex declined to comment.

The Bayesian disaster, which has puzzled experts who said the boat would have been built to withstand a severe storm, adds to recent woes for yacht insurers, who have faced a raft of hurricane losses in the past few years.

Premium rates have risen by four to five times in the past couple of years in parts of the U.S. and the Caribbean, and yacht insurers have cut the amount of cover they provide because of the risks, Seikaly said.

As a result, insurers have increased rates and re-evaluated their guidelines and risk appetite, according to industry experts.

As well as hurricanes, insured losses have mostly stemmed from severe storms, floods, and other weather events in North America, the Caribbean, and Europe, according to a report by broker Marsh.

Seikaly said four clients had last week been ready to buy boats but changed their minds because of the high cost of insurance.

Climate change was also likely to add to yacht insurers’ worries, Seikaly added, as it throws up more unexpected events.

“Whoever thought a storm in the Mediterranean in the month of August is going to sink a ship?”

(Additional reporting by Sinead Cruise; editing by Michelle Price and Sandra Maler)

Photograph: Italian Firefighters scuba divers bring ashore in a blue bag the body of one of the victims of the UK flag vessel Bayesian, on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)

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• Categories: International & Reinsurance News Topics: British Marine , Convex Group Ltd. , marine insurance , marine liability insurance , Navium Marine , NSI Insurance Group , OMAC , protection and indemnity (P&I) , superyacht insurance , The Travelers Cos. , yacht insurance
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Superyacht tragedy: Insurance costs projected to reach $150 million

The British-flagged 56-metre-long (184-foot-long) yacht, which the experts estimated cost around $40 million, capsized and went down on Aug. 19 within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off northern Sicily. read more

Insurers of the Bayesian superyacht that sank this month, killing tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and six others, could be on the hook for at least $150 million, according to the first estimates by industry experts.

The superyacht’s hull was insured against physical damage by yacht insurance provider OMAC and a consortium of insurers including Travelers Companies Inc, Navium Marine and Convex, Reuters reported last week.

Its protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance, which typically covers third-party liability claims including for environmental damage, injury and death, was provided by British Marine.

The hull was likely insured for around $40 million, while the P&I cover would be larger, insurance sources said.

”Our understanding is that the cost of the boat was between $40 and $50 million, so the limit of the hull & machinery policy was probably around those values,” said Marcos Alvarez, managing director, global financial institution ratings at Morningstar DBRS.

The P&I policy would likely be ”several multiples” of the hull policy, or $200-300 million, Alvarez added, noting it would also likely cover liability payments even if the captain or crew are found to be negligent.

Prosecutors in the town of Termini Imerese, near Palermo, are investigating the captain and two other crew members. An investigation does not imply guilt or mean formal charges will follow. Prosecutors have said the probe would take time and require salvaging the wreck.

Oscar Seikaly, CEO of broker NSI Insurance Group, that provides yacht insurance, estimated the hull value at $40-70 million, but said P&I cover might not total more than $100 million.

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

Reuters is the first to report the potential insurance costs. OMAC, Travelers and Navium Marine did not immediately respond to Reuters’ for comment. Convex declined to comment.

The Bayesian disaster, which has puzzled experts who said the boat would have been built to withstand a severe storm, adds to recent woes for yacht insurers, who have faced a raft of hurricane losses in the past few years.

Premium rates have risen by four to five times in the past couple of years in parts of the U.S. and the Caribbean, and yacht insurers have cut the amount of cover they provide because of the risks, Seikaly said.

As a result, insurers have increased rates and re-evaluated their guidelines and risk appetite, according to industry experts.

As well as hurricanes, insured losses have mostly stemmed from severe storms, floods, and other weather events in North America, the Caribbean, and Europe, according to a report by broker Marsh.

Seikaly said four clients had last week been ready to buy boats but changed their minds because of the high cost of insurance.

Climate change was also likely to add to yacht insurers’ worries, Seikaly added, as it throws up more unexpected events.

”Whoever thought a storm in the Mediterranean in the month of August is going to sink a ship?”

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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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Superyacht disaster: How much the capsized vessel may cost insurers

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Insurers have increased rates and re-evaluated their guidelines and risk appetite. (File)

Insurers of the Bayesian superyacht that sank this month, killing tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and six others, could be on the hook for at least $150 million, according to the first estimates by industry experts.

The British-flagged 56-metre-long (184-foot-long) yacht, which the experts estimated cost around $40 million, capsized and went down on August 19 within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off northern Sicily.

The superyacht's hull was insured against physical damage by yacht insurance provider OMAC and a consortium of insurers including Travelers Companies Inc, Navium Marine and Convex, Reuters reported last week.

Its protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance, which typically covers third-party liability claims including for environmental damage, injury and death, was provided by British Marine.

The hull was likely insured for around $40 million, while the P&I cover would be larger, insurance sources said.

"Our understanding is that the cost of the boat was between $40 and $50 million, so the limit of the hull & machinery policy was probably around those values," said Marcos Alvarez, managing director of global financial institution ratings at Morningstar DBRS.

The P&I policy would likely be "several multiples" of the hull policy, or $200-300 million, Alvarez added, noting it would also likely cover liability payments even if the captain or crew are found to be negligent.

Prosecutors in the town of Termini Imerese, near Palermo, are investigating the captain and two other crew members. An investigation does not imply guilt or mean formal charges will follow. Prosecutors have said the probe would take time and require salvaging the wreck.

Oscar Seikaly, CEO of broker NSI Insurance Group, that provides yacht insurance, estimated the hull value at $40-70 million, but said P&I cover might not total more than $100 million.

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

Reuters is the first to report the potential insurance costs. OMAC, Travelers and Navium Marine did not immediately respond to Reuters' for comment. Convex declined to comment.

The Bayesian disaster, which has puzzled experts who said the boat would have been built to withstand a severe storm, adds to recent woes for yacht insurers, who have faced a raft of hurricane losses in the past few years.

Premium rates have risen by four to five times in the past couple of years in parts of the US and the Caribbean, and yacht insurers have cut the amount of cover they provide because of the risks, Seikaly said.

As a result, insurers have increased rates and re-evaluated their guidelines and risk appetite, according to industry experts.

As well as hurricanes, insured losses have mostly stemmed from severe storms, floods, and other weather events in North America, the Caribbean, and Europe, according to a report by broker Marsh.

Seikaly said four clients had last week been ready to buy boats but changed their minds because of the high cost of insurance.

Climate change was also likely to add to yacht insurers' worries, Seikaly added, as it throws up more unexpected events.

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"Whoever thought a storm in the Mediterranean in the month of August is going to sink a ship?"

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Issue 216: the superyacht new build report is now available to read and download online….

The New Build Report 2023  gave us a chance to look at the wider issue of industry sustainability. There will be many divergent paths to achieving its targets, but 2030 is no longer an arbitrary date. The fascinating discussion from The Superyacht Forum between Peter Lürssen, CEO of Lürssen , and Henk de Vries, CEO of Feadship set the stage in late 2022. Now seems the right time to look at some of the most exciting projects, concepts and ideas in development. 

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The concept of a zero-fossil-fuel superyacht has seemed a bridge too far for much of the industry despite the imperative placed on it by encroaching regulatory frameworks. Undoubtedly the most ambitious build featured in these pages, and arguably from across the industry, Project Zero aims to break the status quo. With the 69-metre Vitters ketch nearing reality, Marnix Hoekstra, co-creative director at Vripack , joins TSG to take a closer look at this open-source project and the equally ambitious foundation that supports it.  

For this edition, our editors also visited French Polynesia with the team from EYOS Expeditions , to see how a legendary polar exploration vessel is plying its trade in the tropics. We also analyse the hotly contested Italian 50m market and asked our readers to pick their favourite...

We are fully committed to working towards a greener superyacht industry. And we, as a team, aim to do all we can to ensure that we are part of the solution. That’s why we are encouraging our loyal readership to make the switch to digital media consumption, instead of print.

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Missing revealed as divers search superyacht that sank in storm off Sicily

The missing include british tech magnate mike lynch, a morgan stanley boss and a clifford chance lawyer, a local official told nbc news early tuesday., by claudio lavanga, yuliya talmazan | nbc news • published august 20, 2024 • updated on august 20, 2024 at 4:20 pm.

Rescue teams and divers were searching Tuesday for six missing people, including a British tech magnate and a Morgan Stanley boss,   after  a luxury superyacht sank in a storm off Sicily .

The identity of those still missing emerged after an initial search of the 184-foot sailboat, named the Bayesian, was unsuccessful Monday. The British-flagged tourist vessel had 22 people aboard when it sank because of “a violent storm” off Sicily’s main city, Palermo, around 5 a.m. local time (11 p.m. ET) on Monday, the local coast guard said.

Fifteen people were rescued by a boat present in the immediate vicinity and then brought ashore by coast guard vessels, but six passengers, including American, British and Canadian citizens, remained missing, it said. They were believed to be trapped in the boat's hull, some 164 feet underwater, posing a challenge to divers who returned to the site Tuesday off Porticello, near Palermo.

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Salvatore Cocina, director of Sicily’s Civil Protection Agency, told NBC News early Tuesday that the missing include British tech magnate Mike Lynch and his daughter, Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, as well as Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife.

Cocina did not specify the nationalities of the missing. He also did not identify Lynch's daughter or the wives of Bloomer and Morvillo.

A spokesperson for Clifford Chance, where Morvillo works as a lawyer, confirmed to NBC News Tuesday that he and his wife Neda were among the missing. 

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“Our utmost priority is providing support to the family as well as our colleague Ayla Ronald, who together with her partner, thankfully survived the incident,” the spokesperson said.

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Italy’s national fire department said that its divers were able to get inside the wreck during a late-night dive Monday, inspecting some cabins located under the bridge, but were having trouble navigating because of obstructions and narrow access gates.

Rescuers said that there might be bodies inside the cabins but that they had so far been unable to check through the ship’s portholes.

Divers were working in 12-minute underwater search shifts, while surface searches continued in the area of ​​the shipwreck with a helicopter and a fire brigade boat, it added.

Mike Lynch, who was regularly described in U.K. media as “Britain’s Bill Gates,” was cleared of fraud charges in a blockbuster U.S. trial earlier this summer. Sources told CNBC on Monday that his wife, Angela Bacares, has been rescued. Italian news agency ANSA identified his daughter, missing alongside her father, as Hannah, 18.

Just days before Lynch went missing, his co-defendant, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being “fatally struck by a car” while out running Saturday, his lawyer Gary Lincenberg told NBC News in an emailed statement. Reuters reported that Chamberlain was a former vice president of finance at Autonomy, Lynch’s company at the center of the trial.

The sailing vacation that ended in tragedy appeared to be something of a celebration after Lynch’s acquittal — Morvillo was one of Lynch’s U.S. lawyers and Bloomer testified in his defense.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event. Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing,” Aki Hussain, the head of insurance company Hiscox, told NBC News in an emailed statement.

A Morgan Stanley spokesperson also said: “Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular the Bloomer family, as we all wait for further news from this terrible situation.”

Judy Bloomer was described as “a brilliant champion for women’s health and medical research” by The Eve Appeal, a British cancer charity, in an emailed statement to NBC News.

Britain's Marine Accident Investigation Branch said it was deploying a team of four inspectors to Palermo to conduct a preliminary assessment of the incident.

The coast guard said in a statement Monday that the ship’s cook had died. It did not give his nationality. Reuters identified him as Antiguan citizen Ricardo Thomas.

One of the survivors, identified as Charlotte Emsley, 35, told the Italian news agency ANSA that she had momentarily lost hold of her year-old daughter, Sofia, in the water but managed to retrieve her and hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were pulled to safety.

Built by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi in 2008, the U.K.-registered, Bayesian can carry 12 guests and a crew of up to 10, according to online specialist yacht sites.

The yacht’s nearly 250-foot mast is the tallest aluminum sailing mast in the world,  according to  CharterWorld Luxury Yacht Charters. 

Luca Mercalli, Italian climatologist and president of the country’s meteorological society, told Reuters that the storm could have involved a waterspout, essentially a tornado over water, or a downburst, a more frequent phenomenon that doesn’t involve the rotation of the air.

Storms and heavy rainfall have swept Italy in recent days after weeks of scorching heat.

“The sea surface temperature around Sicily was around 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit), which is almost 3 degrees more than normal,” Mercalli said. “This creates an enormous source of energy that contributes to these storms.”

Claudio Lavanga reported from Rome, and Yuliya Talmazan from London.

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Divers find 5 bodies during search of superyacht wreckage after it sank off Sicily, 1 still missing

The bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) british-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early monday, by nicole winfield, danica kirka and andrea rosa | the associated press • published august 21, 2024 • updated on august 21, 2024 at 3:19 pm.

Divers searching the wreck of a superyacht  that sank off Sicily found the bodies of five passengers Wednesday and searched for one more as questions intensified about why the vessel sank so quickly when a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed.

Rescue crews brought four body bags ashore into port at Porticello. Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicily civil protection agency, said a fifth body had been located. Divers at the scene said they would try to recover it on Thursday while continuing the search for the sixth.

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Video shows moments before superyacht went down in storm off Sicily

Missing revealed as divers search superyacht that sank in storm off Sicily

The discovery made clear the operation to search the hull on the seabed 50 meters (164 feet) underwater had quickly turned into a recovery one, not a rescue, given the amount of time that had passed and with no signs of life emerging over three days of searching.

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The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm  early Monday  as it was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, and sank quickly.

Fifteen people escaped in a lifeboat and were rescued by a nearby sailboat. One body was recovered Monday — that of the ship’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, of Antigua.

Thomas was born in Canada, according to his cousin David Isaac, but would visit his parents’ homeland of Antigua as a child, moving permanently to the tiny eastern Caribbean island in his early 20s. Italian officials previously listed Antigua and Canada as the nationality of people on board.

The fate of six missing passengers had driven the search effort, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and associates who had successfully defended him in a recent U.S. federal fraud trial.

Lynch’s spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Meanwhile, investigators from the Termini Imerese Public Prosecutor’s Office were acquiring evidence for their criminal investigation, which they opened immediately after the tragedy  even though no formal suspects have been publicly identified.

Questions have abounded about what caused the superyacht, built in 2008 by Italian shipyard Perini Navi, to sink so quickly, when the nearby Sir Robert Baden Powell sailboat was largely spared and managed to rescue the survivors.

Giovanni Costantino, head of The Italian Sea Group, which owns the shipmaker, blamed human error for the disaster, which he said took 16 minutes. “The ship sank because it took on water. From where, the investigators will say,” he told RAI state television after he met with prosecutors.

Costantino cited AIS ship tracking data which he said showed the Bayesian had taken on water for four minutes when a sudden gust of wind flipped it and it continued taking on water. The ship straightened up slightly and then went down, he said.

But was it merely the case of a freak waterspout that knocked the ship to its side and allowed water to pour in through open hatches? What was the position of the keel, which on a large sailboat like the Bayesian might have been retractable, to allow it to enter shallower ports?

“There’s a lot of uncertainty as to whether it had a lifting keel and whether it might have been up,” said Jean-Baptiste Souppez, a fellow of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects and the editor of the Journal of Sailing Technology. “But if it had, then that would reduce the amount of stability that the vessel had, and therefore made it easier for it to roll over on its side,” he said in an interview.

The captain of the sailboat that came to the Bayesian’s rescue said his craft had sustained minimal damage — the frame of a sun awning broke — even with winds that he estimated reached 12 on the Beaufort wind scale, which is the highest hurricane-strength force on the scale.

He said he had remained anchored with his engines running to try to maintain the ship’s position as the storm, which was forecast, rolled in.

“Another possibility is to heave anchor before the storm and to run downwind at open sea,” Karsten Bornersaid in a text message. But he said that might not have been a viable option for the Bayesian, given its trademark 75-meter (246-foot) tall mast.

“If there was a stability problem, caused by the extremely tall mast, it would not have been better at open sea,” he said.

Yachts like the Bayesian are required to have watertight, sub-compartments that are specifically designed to prevent a rapid, catastrophic sinking even when some parts fill with water.

“So for the vessel to sink, especially this fast, you are really looking at taking water on board very quickly, but also in a number of locations along the length of the vessel, which again indicates that it might have been rolled over on its side,” Souppez said.

Italian coast guard and fire rescue divers continued the underwater search in dangerous and time-consuming conditions. Because of the wreck’s depth, which requires special precautions, divers working in tag teams could only spend about 12 minutes at a time searching, though reinforcements outfitted with special equipment to enable longer dives were also on the wreck Wednesday.

In all, some 27 divers were taking rotations, including four who helped with the recovery of the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster off Tuscany. They called the Porticello wreck a “little Concordia,” fire crews said in a statement, which for the first time Wednesday referred to the operation as a “recovery.”

The limited dive time was designed in part to avoid decompression sickness, also known as the “bends,” which can occur when divers stay underwater for long periods and ascend too quickly, allowing nitrogen gas dissolved in the blood to form bubbles.

“The longer you stay, the slower your ascent has to be,” said Simon Rogerson, the editor of SCUBA magazine. He said the tight turnaround time suggested the operation's managers were trying to limit the risks and recovery time after each dive.

“It sounds like they’re operating essentially on no decompression or very tight decompression, or they’re being extremely conservative,” he said.

Additionally, the divers were working in extremely tight spaces, with debris floating around them, limited visibility and air tanks on their backs.

“We are trying to advance in tight spaces, but any single thing slows us down,” said Luca Cari, spokesman for the fire rescue service. “An electric panel could set us back for five hours. These aren’t normal conditions. We’re at the limit of possibility.”

“It’s not a question of entering the cabin to inspect it,” he added. “They’ve arrived at the level of the cabins, but it’s not like you can open the door.”

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„Menschliches Versagen“: Superyacht von Mike Lynch sei unsinkbar gewesen

Superyacht-tragödie um tech-milliardär mike lynch sei menschliches versagen, so der chef des bootsbauers.

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Die Bayesian-Yacht sank vergangene Woche. Dabei kamen sieben Menschen ums Leben, darunter Mike Lynch und seine 18-jährige Tochter. Die Ursache ist ungeklärt.  

  Nun erklärte Giovanni Costantino, der Chef des Bootsherstellers, dass das Schiff nur durch menschliches Versagen gesunken sein könne, berichtet „The Guardian“ .  

Er geht davon aus, dass die Yacht aufgrund einer offen gelassenen Luke Wasser aufnahm. Ein altes Segelschiff, das nur etwa 150 Meter entfernt gewesen sei, sei nicht beschädigt worden. Die Besatzung habe die Wetterbedingungen nicht ernst genommen.  

Die Bayesian-Yacht sank vergangene Woche und forderte das Leben von sieben Menschen an Bord, darunter der britische Technologieunternehmer Mike Lynch und seine 18-jährige Tochter. 15 Personen, darunter Lynchs Ehefrau, der das Schiff gehörte, wurden gerettet. Die Untersuchung der genauen Ursache der Tragödie ist noch im Gange.

Nun erklärte Giovanni Costantino, der Vorstandsvorsitzende der italienischen Sea Group, der der Hersteller der Bayesian, Perini Navi, gehört, dass das Schiff nur durch menschliches Versagen gesunken sein könne, berichtet „The Guardian“ .

Er habe gedacht, dass die Superyacht vielleicht gegen einen Felsen gekracht sei. „Aber als die Passagiere erklärten, sie hätten kein lautes Geräusch an Bord gehört, was bedeutet hätte, dass die Yacht auf ein Riff aufgelaufen wäre, wurde mir klar, dass die Yacht aufgrund einer offen gelassenen Luke Wasser aufgenommen hatte. Ansonsten kann die Bayesian nicht sinken“, sagte Constantino der Zeitung.

„Eine Kette von menschlichen Fehlern“

Er gehe davon aus, dass es „eine Kette von menschlichen Fehlern“ gegeben habe. Laut der Zeitung befasste er sich nach dem Unglück mit den Routen des Schiffs, prüfte den Wetterbericht, der einen herannahenden Sturm vorhersagte, und untersuchte die Aufnahmen der Überwachungskameras.

Ein im Jahr 1957 gebautes Segelschiff, das sich zum Zeitpunkt des Sturms etwa 150 Meter von der Bayesian entfernt befunden habe, sei nicht beschädigt worden, so Constantino. Die Besatzung hätte das Schiff gut vorbereitet und auch die Fischer seien in dieser Nacht nicht hinaus gefahren.

„Diese Leute haben die Wetterbedingungen ernst genommen. Wie konnte die Besatzung der Bayesian die Wettervorhersage nicht ernst nehmen? Ich kann es mir nicht erklären. Wie konnten sie, als sie merkten, dass sie das Schiff verloren, nicht daran denken, die Passagiere zu retten, die sich in den Kabinen befanden? Das weiß im Moment nur Gott“, sagte der Chef des Bootsbauers „The Guardian“.

Die italienische Staatsanwaltschaft hat gegen drei Besatzungsmitglieder Ermittlungen eingeleitet.

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