A new weather map shows how Mike’s Lynch’s doomed superyacht was buffeted by winds of up to 150mph before it suddenly sank off the coast of Sicily.
The port of Porticello was a poignant scene on Monday night as a rare ‘blue’ supermoon rose over the tragic site where yacht Bayesian went down this morning.
One man has been confirmed dead while six other people are missing – with fears they were asleep in their cabins when the boat sank.
British tech billionaire Lynch and his daughter Hannah, 18, are among those missing while the tycoon’s wife Angela Bacares is recovering having survived the storm.
A coast guard official in the Sicilian capital Palermo said tonight: ‘The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude.’
A meteorological map of the micro-climate around the scene of the tragedy shows the intense winds of up to 150 mph which developed just off the coast.
A new weather map shows how Mike’s Lynch’s superyacht was buffeted by winds of up to 150mph before it sank
Italian Coast Guard Command teams and firefighters are carrying out search and rescue operations with helicopters and ships to find six missing people
The luxury Bayesian sailing boat, in Palermo, Sicily, Italy
British tech billionaire Mike Lynch (pictured) and his daughter Hannah, 18, are among those missing
The winds created a mini hurricane which seized the Bayesian in its deadly grip, causing the vessel to capsize.
Tonight, as searchers from the Italian authorities continue their work beyond the harbour wall, another vessel called Sir Robert Baden Powell stands barely lit by the moon.
The Dutch ship’s crew managed to rescue some of the 15 survivors from the stricken British-flagged Bayesian, including a mother and baby.
Eyewitnesses said the yacht vanished quickly beneath the waves shortly before dawn.
Fifteen people escaped before it went down, including Lynch’s wife Angela, who owned the boat, and a one-year-old girl.
The Italian coast guard said the missing had British, American and Canadian nationalities. Survivors said the trip was organised by Lynch for his work colleagues.
Lynch reportedly invited his family and friends on the sailboat to celebrate charges of fraud and conspiracy for allegedly scheming to inflate a company’s value before it was sold being dropped.
A handout photo made available on 19 August 2024 by Perini Navi Press Office shows the ‘Bayesian’ sailing boat, in Palermo, Sicily, Italy
He had gathered guests from legal firm Clifford Chance, and his own company Invoke Capital after being cleared in June.
One of the survivors is Clifford Chance lawyer Ayla Ronald, 36, who was part of the successful legal team who were invited to go sailing with Lynch, according to her father Lin.
Mr Ronald told The Telegraph: ‘I have texted with my daughter and she hasn’t given me any updates about missing personnel or saved personnel. She has only said to me that there are deaths, and she and her partner are alive.’
Speaking of the celebrations, witness told Italian news agency ANSA: ‘A beautiful vessel where there had been a party. A normal holiday day spent happily at sea turned into a tragedy.’
The body of Canadian Ricardo Thomas, who was working as the boat’s chef and who was the only crew member unaccounted for, was found floating alongside the vessel earlier today.