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Italian authorities continue to search for the 18-year-old daughter of tech mogul Mike Lynch, who has been identified as one of five bodies recovered from the wreckage of the Albaicin yacht.
The Italian Coast Guard also confirmed finding the bodies of Jonathan Plumer and his wife Judith Plumer, and lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Nida Morvillo.
Hannah, the British millionaire’s youngest daughter, remains missing, with the Italian Coast Guard returning to the scene with divers and underwater vehicles.
The boat sank in a severe storm in the early hours of Monday morning, and the bodies of four people, including a “huge” man, were recovered on Wednesday.
The head of Sicily’s civil protection agency, Salvatore Cosina, said the priority remained the search for the missing sixth passenger.
One man, the boat’s chief cook Ricaldo Tomas, was confirmed dead on Monday, while 15 others survived the disaster.
Divers in search operation face ‘enormous amounts of psychological stress’
A former Royal Navy submarine commander has said the divers who recovered the bodies of Mike Lynch and his companions will be under enormous psychological pressure.
“It’s been very stressful for them mentally and physically,” Ryan Ramsay told Sky News.
“If you consider the pressures they are working under, it is great.
“It’s a dark place. It’s a platform they’ve never been on before, and they have to recover bodies. It’s a huge amount of stress for these divers.”
Search efforts were hampered by debris and furniture blocking the yacht’s tight spaces, as well as the fact that divers were given no more than 10 minutes to search the ship at a time.
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 11:24
Ambulance carrying fifth body leaves Porticello
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 11:08
Tech group pays tribute to ‘pioneer’ Mike Lynch
Technology industry group TechUK has paid tribute to Mike Lynch following his death.
A company spokesperson said: “Mike Lynch was a very important and distinguished figure in the UK technology sector.
“Our hearts go out to all the families and friends affected by these tragic events.”
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 11:05
The 22 people on board the Bayzian and how they celebrated after years of legal battles
British tech mogul Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among those initially unidentified after his luxury yacht, the Paisian, sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday morning.
After a decade-long legal battle that saw him extradited to the US to face an $11 billion fraud case, Mr Lynch celebrated by inviting his close friends, colleagues and those who helped him in his legal team on board his boat as a gesture of gratitude.
Read the full article here:
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 11:00
The Royal Academy of Engineering sends its deepest condolences to the Lynch family.
The Royal Academy of Engineering has paid tribute to its “mentor, donor and former council member” Mike Lynch after his death in the luxury yacht disaster off Sicily.
In a statement, the academy said: “The Board of Trustees, Fellows and staff of the Royal Academy of Engineering are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Mike Lynch, and send our deepest condolences to his family.
“Mike became a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2008 and we have fond memories of the active role he played in the past as a mentor, donor and former Council member.
He was also a founding member of the Projects Committee.
“Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.”
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:51
Captain of boat that rescued Bayesian survivors recounts how giant yacht sank ‘in two minutes’
Boat captain who rescued Bayesian survivors recounts sinking ‘in two minutes’
The captain of the boat that helped rescue survivors of the Bayezid yacht has recalled how the vessel sank “in just two minutes” off the coast of Sicily on Monday, August 19. The vessel sank in a violent storm, and the bodies of five people were recovered from the wreckage. Tech mogul Mike Lynch was identified as one of those recovered, along with Jonathan Plummer, his wife Judith Plummer, and lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Nida Morvillo. Chef Riccaldo Thomas was confirmed dead on Monday. Captain Carsten Borner told Sky News of the moment the boat sank: “We couldn’t see them anymore, they disappeared from the radar.”
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:46
Pictured: Four passengers died in the sinking of the Bayzi.
Billionaire Mike Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International Bank President Jonathan Plummer, his wife Judy Plummer, and Clifford Chance attorney Chris Morvillo and his wife Nida Morvillo were missing when the Baysian sank around 5 a.m. Monday.
Five of their bodies have now been recovered and identified, while the search continues for Lynch’s 18-year-old daughter.
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:39
“I knew Mike Lynch and his next idea was to make us believe the unbelievable.”
He feared he would die in an American prison, not because he was guilty – he had spent £30 million on legal fees to defend his innocence – but because it was almost unheard of in the US for anyone to win a case against the US Department of Justice. His chances of winning were 0.5 per cent. Yet after 13 years of gathering detailed evidence to support his case, he was acquitted and it felt like a miracle.
Once back in the UK, Lynch began celebrating what he called his second life. Through tears, he told an interviewer how magical the London traffic seemed to him. “I just think, ‘This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,’” he said.
Read the full article here from Jonathan Margolis:
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:24
The yacht’s CEO says the Bayzian was ‘one of the safest boats in the world’
The disaster has baffled maritime experts who say such a vessel, built by Italian luxury yacht maker Perini and supposedly equipped with top-notch safety equipment, should have been able to withstand such weather.
Captain James Cutfield and his eight surviving crew members have made no public comment on the disaster.
Giovanni Costantino, chief executive of Italian Sea Group, which includes Perini, said the Bayzian was “one of the safest ships in the world” and essentially unsinkable.
He added in interviews with Italian media that he believed the disaster was caused by a series of human errors and that the storm was expected.
“The ship sank because of water ingress, that’s what the investigators will say,” Costantino told the TG1 television news programme late on Wednesday.
Citing data from the yacht’s automatic tracking system and available footage, Costantino said it took 16 minutes from when the winds started blowing over the yacht and water started entering it for it to sink.
Costantino said the Milan-listed group had suffered “serious damage” to its reputation, with its shares down 2.5% since the disaster.
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:19
Latest photos from the scene
Holly EvansAugust 22, 2024 10:13
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