A luxury yacht, the ‘Bayesian’, sank off the coast of Sicily during a violent storm on August 19, 2024, resulting in one confirmed death and six people missing, including British tech billionaire Mike Lynch and his daughter Hannah. The 56-meter yacht, carrying 22 people, was struck by a waterspout around 5 am local time.Italian coast guard and firefighters rescued 15 people, including Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who suffered minor injuries. A one-year-old British girl was also among those rescued and taken to a hospital in Palermo as a precaution.Mike Lynch, 59, known as the ‘British Bill Gates’, is a prominent tech entrepreneur who co-founded the software company Autonomy. He was recently acquitted in June 2024 of fraud charges related to the $11 billion sale of Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.The yacht, which could be rented for up to $215,000 per week, was found at a depth of approximately 50 meters. Rescue operations are ongoing, with divers attempting to enter the wreckage. The search efforts involve helicopters, coast guard boats, as well as firefighters and civil defense personnel.Charlotte Golunski, a 35-year-old British passenger who was rescued, recounted the harrowing experience: ‘I lost my one-year-old daughter in the water for two seconds before recovering her. I immediately hugged her in the middle of the waves. Many were screaming. Luckily, the life raft was inflated, and we were 11 to board it,’.The Italian authorities have launched an investigation into the incident. A coast guard official in Palermo told Reuters, ‘The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude’. The sinking of the yacht has raised questions about the increasing frequency of extreme weather events in the Mediterranean, with experts suggesting that recent scorching temperatures may have contributed to more violent weather conditions.
Key points
- Luxury yacht ‘Bayesian’ sank off Sicily coast during a violent storm, leaving one dead and six missing.
- British tech billionaire Mike Lynch and his daughter Hannah are among the missing.
- 15 people were rescued, including Lynch’s wife and a one-year-old child.
- The incident has sparked an investigation and raised questions about extreme weather events in the Mediterranean.
Contradictions👾Some sources report Mike Lynch’s age as 59, while others do not specify his age.
👾There are slight discrepancies in the reported depth of the wreckage, with most sources citing around 50 meters, while one source mentions 163 feet (approximately 49.
7 meters).
