Survivor of Yacht That Sank Off Sicily’s Coast Recalls How She Used ‘All My Strength’ to Save Her 1-Year-Old

A mom aboard the luxury superyacht that sank after what officials called a “violent storm” off the coast of Sicily this week is speaking out about how she was able to save her young daughter from being swept away by the water.

The mother was identified to PEOPLE by local authorities as Charlotte Golunski — who, along with her partner, was so shocked about how bad the weather had gotten that they went above board just before disaster struck the Bayesian early on Monday, Aug. 19, the sources say.

After going into the water, Golunski lost her grip on her 1-year-old daughter, Sophie, when a wave smashed against them, taking the child out to sea, according to the local sources.

The same wave returned the girl a short time later in what was described as something of a miracle.

In an interview with Italian newspaper la Repubblica, Golunski said that she briefly lost her daughter for about two seconds due to the intensity of the sea but was then was able to retrieve the child. 

“I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning,” Golunski told the newspaper, according to a translation.

She added: “It was all dark. In the water I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.”

The Italian coast guard said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE that the Bayesian, a 56-meter yacht flying the U.K. flag, sank near Poritcello around 5 a.m., local time on Monday after the storm.

According to Italian news service ANSA, Golunski and her child were safely rescued via a lifeboat, per the Associated Press. 

Salvo Cocina, an official with Sicily’s civil protection agency, said that the baby’s father, James Emsley, survived the incident, according to Sky News. 

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The Guardian reported that a doctor with the hospital in Palermo where Sophie and her mother were taken in, Domenico Cipolla, said, “The baby is doing well. The mother is also in good condition, albeit with some minor abrasions. The father will also be discharged from the hospital soon.”

BBC News reported that Golunski is a colleague of Mike Lynch, the British tech entrepreneur who is one of the people — including his 18-year-old daughter Hannah — who is still missing following the sinking of the 184-foot yacht. 

Also among the disappeared are two Americans.

Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, was one of 15 people saved out of a total of 22 who were originally aboard the Bayesian, the Italian coast guard and local sources said. Eight of the rescued were taken to local hospitals

According to Italian media outlets, a man’s body was found after the sinking and later identified as the yacht’s chef, per Reuters. 

Witnesses said the yacht was moored in front of a port in Porticello when the storm hit, the local newspaper Giornale di Sicilia reported. 

“That boat was all lit up,” a man in Porticello told the outlet. “At about 4:30 in the morning it was gone. A beautiful boat where there had been a party. A normal day of vacation spent happily at sea turned into a tragedy.”

Search and rescue efforts continue, the coast guard said, as does an investigation into the incident.