By V.E.K.Madhushani, Jadetimes News
A Tragic Turn: The Final Moments of a High-Stakes Maritime Mission
Until midnight last Sunday, 78 year old Matteo Cannia, a lifelong fisherman from Porticello, sat on a bench overlooking the sea. Unable to sleep due to the heat, he noticed the first flashes of lightning. "I heard the thunder and the wind and decided to go home," he recalled. "As the storm grew, everyone woke. Water was coming into my friend’s house."
Around 04:15 local time, Fabio Cefalù, another fisherman who had planned to go out that wild Monday morning but wisely chose not to, suddenly saw a flare. Concerned, he ventured out to sea to investigate and found only floating cushions and planks of wood. The luxury super yacht, Bayesian, moored just a few hundred meters away, had already sunk.
In a mere 16 minutes, a sleepy Sicilian fishing port was thrust into the global spotlight. Of the 22 passengers aboard the Bayesian, all but seven managed to scramble into a life raft as the yacht began to capsize. The others never made it out.
One of the survivors, British woman Charlotte Golunski, was thrown into the water with her one year old daughter, Sophie. She described how she clutched her baby above the water with all her strength to keep her from drowning. "It was all black around me," she said, "and the only thing I could hear were the screams of others." She, her baby, and her husband James were among those rescued by a nearby sailing boat captain. Tragically, her colleague Mike Lynch one of the UK’s top tech entrepreneurs, often dubbed “Britain’s Bill Gates” was trapped inside the sinking yacht.
Lynch had organized the trip as a celebration following his recent acquittal in the U.S. on charges related to the sale of his company, Autonomy, to Hewlett Packard in 2011. The holiday was meant to mark his return to public favor. Three days after the yacht sank, his body was recovered by divers. A day later, the body of his 18 year old daughter, Hannah, who was set to begin studies at the University of Oxford, was also found.
Among the others who perished were Jonathan Bloomer, president of the investment bank Morgan Stanley, his wife Judy, Lynch’s lawyer Chris Morvillo, his wife Neda, and the yacht’s chef, Recaldo Thomas. Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, survived. The family has expressed their "unspeakable grief," stating they are "devastated and in shock."
Experts remain puzzled as to how the super yacht sank so quickly while smaller vessels nearby survived the storm unscathed. Local prosecutors have launched an investigation into potential manslaughter and negligent shipwreck charges. Ambrogio Cartosio, the region’s state prosecutor, emphasized that while the investigation is still in its early stages, "many possibilities for culpability" exist. The captain, the crew, or a combination of both could be implicated.
A team of British marine investigators has been dispatched to Sicily to assist their Italian counterparts. Initial reports suggesting a waterspout or mini tornado at sea as the cause of the sinking have been contradicted by new findings pointing to a downburst, a powerful and localized wind phenomenon that descends from a thunderstorm.
Much of the investigation will focus on the actions of the captain, 51 year old James Cutfield from New Zealand, who survived along with eight of his crew. In his only public statement, he told Italian media, "We didn’t see it coming," referring to the storm. However, others did. Severe weather warnings had been issued, with violent winds and rain forecast following days of intense heat.
Giovanni Costantino, head of the company that built the Bayesian, believes a series of mistakes were made on board. He speculated that a hatch or side entrance was left open, allowing water to pour in. He further criticized the captain for not taking standard precautions such as closing all openings, lifting anchor, turning on the engine, pointing into the wind, and lowering the keel a fin like structure that stabilizes the vessel.
Rescuers found the Bayesian 50 meters underwater, with its almost 10 meter long keel raised, which likely contributed to its instability during the storm. Experts have suggested that had the keel been deployed, it might have helped counter the wind’s force on the yacht’s 75 meter high aluminum mast, possibly preventing the capsize.
Costantino described the Bayesian as "a model for many other vessels" due to its stability and high performance, asserting that the yacht was "unsinkable" if water hadn’t surged in. According to him, there were just 16 minutes between the power going out on the ship at 03:56 indicating water flooding electrical circuits and the GPS signal being lost, marking the moment the yacht sank. This critical period, and the actions taken during it, will be closely scrutinized by investigators, particularly once the vessel’s black box recorder is recovered.
Rino Casilli, one of Sicily’s top ship surveyors, also pointed to potential human error. He noted that given the storm warning, there should have been two crew members on watch overnight, and the yacht should have been moored in the harbor, not out at sea. It remains unclear how many, if any, crew members were on watch that night.
From his sailing boat, Casilli offered a rare glimpse of the spot where the Bayesian went down. Around them, an Italian police vessel patrolled the area, and divers were actively recovering bodies from the wreckage. Due to the depth of the wreckage, 50 meters underwater, each diver was allowed only 10 minutes down before resurfacing, requiring a total of 120 dives. They were assisted by remote controlled vehicles capable of longer operations on the seabed.
At a recent press conference, rescuers revealed that passengers trapped inside the sinking yacht sought refuge in cabins on the ship’s left side, where the last air bubbles remained. Five bodies were found in the first cabin on the left, and the last body, confirmed as Hannah Lynch, was in the third cabin on the same side.
Rescuers faced immense challenges accessing the yacht, which remained largely intact, with furniture obstructing entry. The coastguard likened the operation to navigating an "18 story building full of water." When Hannah Lynch’s body was finally brought ashore, emergency workers on the port applauded their colleagues for their efforts.
All seven of the deceased have been transported to a mortuary for post mortem examinations. As investigators consider whether and how to salvage the wreckage, which could provide vital clues, the maritime industry anxiously awaits the findings. Salvaging the Bayesian could take six to eight weeks and cost up to €15 million.
While the painstaking work of recovering the dead has ended, the investigators’ search for answers has only just begun. They, along with the survivors, are staying in a hotel near Porticello, strictly off limits to journalists. Security guards swiftly turned reporters away.
Solving the mystery of what happened to the Bayesian is crucial not only for the victims' families to find some closure but also for the maritime industry to learn vital lessons from this tragedy. The captain's brother described him as a "well respected" sailor with a lifetime of experience. Whether this experienced sailor made a series of catastrophic errors remains to be seen.
The seafarers' union, Nautilus, has urged restraint in passing judgment on the Bayesian’s crew, stating that "any attempt to question their conduct without the full facts is not only unfair but also harmful to the process of uncovering the truth and learning any lessons from this tragedy."
As the world's media begins to leave Porticello, the town is slowly returning to its previous tranquility. Stray cats wander among the old fishing boats, and children play as families dine at the few seaside restaurants. But the events of the past week have left an indelible mark on this small community.
"Last Sunday night, we saw the end of the world in Porticello," said resident Maria Vizzo. "We’ve never seen something like this. Everyone here is shocked and everyone is crying."
