Wreck of sunken $30m yacht Bayesian to be examined

The wreck of the Bayesian Superyacht is now on dry land in Sicily after being lifted from the seabed and made a last final trip from the place where he sank in a storm last summer, killing seven passengers and the crew.

The yacht, which belonged to the entrepreneur of British technology Mike Lynch, was finally recovered from a complex operation of $ 30 million (22.2 million pounds sterling) to allow Italian prosecutors to inspect the wreck in the course of their current investigation.

Mr. Lynch and his teenage daughter were part of seven passengers and the died crew when the Bayesian was overthrown by extreme winds and sank in a few minutes.

Their bodies were recovered by divers several days later.

Other smaller ships in the same region that day survived the intact storm, leaving experts who have trouble understanding why the luxury yacht was so badly affected.

At the time, prosecutors in Sicily announced a criminal investigation into the potential for guilty manslaughter and negligent sinking, describing its result as “completely unpredictable”.

They clearly indicated that the recovery of the Bayesian himself would be essential.

Now the yacht is out of the water, accusation experts will be able to examine physical evidence and start to find answers.

The recovery operation began in May, but was quickly struck by a new disaster when one of the divers was killed in an underwater explosion.

The whole operation involving dozens of experts had to be interrupted.

The diving team was then replaced by remote -controlled submersibles for security, delaying the process.

Set straps around the shell, or the main body of the ship, was also more difficult than expected.

But last week, the rescue team, managed by TMC Maritime, finally cut the giant aluminum mast of 72 million yacht, allowing the shell to straighten up underwater.

The 50 m increase on the surface was then a delicate three -day operation with regular checks for any fuel spill or other pollution.

Prosecutors wanted the remains of the Superyacht to remain as intact as possible.

It was not until Sunday, swinging with a giant floating crane with several straps under his belly, that the Bayesian was ready to transport the 16 km (10 miles) to the shore.

Monday morning, it was lowered in a metal cradle in the port of Termini Imerese where the wreckage, now gray and beaten, will be left to dry before any formal inspection or medico-legal test is carried out.

In the meantime, the rescue teams will recover the giant mast and the rigging of the seabed and will make a final sweep for any other equipment that could help the survey.

Mr. Lynch, a technological entrepreneur, sometimes nicknamed “Britain’s Bill Gates”, was acquitted last summer of accusations of fraud in the United States and the trip around Sicily with his family and friends was planned as a celebration.

In the early hours of August 19, its luxury yacht was anchored just off the coast near the port of Porticello, when the storm struck.

Since then, there have been infinite speculation about the reasons why the Bayesian has flowed: if the doors were closed in time and the other stages of the crew and speed.

Three crew members, including the captain, are the subject of an investigation.

But the Italian prosecution team remained close to their work. Last year, in their only comments to the press, they said they would explore if the accident was due to a human error or potential design defects on the yacht.

“It is only after having analyzed the wreck that we will understand what happened, where the water has arrived, that there was enough water to run the ship or if another factor was involved,” said prosecutor Raffaele Cammarano at the time.

An interim report last month by British maritime investigators, Maib, noted that the Bayesian – with his huge unique mast – was vulnerable to very high wind speeds.

The report suggested only the owner, the crew was aware of it.

The declarations given to its authors also suggested that all the relevant hatches and doors had been closed as the storm was built.

The report was made for safety purposes – avoiding future disasters at sea – and not for any criminal prosecution.

Now that the Bayesian has been brought to the ground, Maib experts will also have access to “check and refine this information”, has been informed of the BBC and “will examine all the factors that have contributed … to the accident”.

Lawyers representing some of the killed describe this as the “most critical phase” of the investigation.

“We will finally be able to see which parts of the boat have made it possible to enter the water, which causes it to flow,” said BBC Mario Bellavista, an acting lawyer for the Bayesian chief, Recaldo Thomas.

“We can see which hatches were open or closed, or any other entry point for water.”

He said the wreckage would provide “the first real proof” for prosecutors.

As another lawyer said, these prosecutors must now discover “how it could have happened on such an incredible boat”.