Bayesian (yacht)

Bayesian at Milazzo, Sicily in 2024
History
Name
  • 2008–2014: Salute[1]
  • 2014–2024: Bayesian[1]
NamesakeBayesian inference[2]
Owner
  • 2008: Eric Albada Jelgersma[1]
  • 2008–2014: John Groenewoud[1]
  • 2014–2024: Revtom Ltd (Angela Bacares)[1]
Operator2022–2024: Camper & Nicholsons International[1]
Port of registry
  • 2008–2010, 2013–2014 Netherlands
  • 2010–2013 Malta Valletta
  • 2014–2024: United Kingdom London
BuilderPerini Navi, Viareggio, Italy[1]
Cost£30m[1]
Completed2008[1]
Out of service19 August 2024
Refit2020[1]
Identification
FateSank in a storm off Porticello, Sicily
General characteristics
Class and typeSuperyacht; flybridge sloop[4]
Tonnage473 GT[5]
Displacement543 t (534 long tons)[5]
Length56.0 m (184 ft)[1]
Beam11.5 m (38 ft)[6]
HeightMast 72 m (236 ft) above DWL[1]
Draught4 m (13 ft); 10 m (33 ft) with retractable keel fully extended[7][4]
Installed powerMTU (8V 2000 M72) 8-cylinder 965hp[6] 1,440 kW (1,930 hp)[4]
PropulsionSingle shaft; fixed pitch propeller
Sail planCutter rig; 2,900 m2 (31,000 sq ft)[4]
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) (cruising)[5]
Range3,600 nm @ 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)[1]
Boats & landing
craft carried
Two tenders[4]
Capacity12 guests[1]
Crew10[5]
NotesAluminium hull, superstructure[6] and mast; tallest ever mast at launch[7] Ballast: retractable keel 60 tonnes; fixed keel box 140 tonnes[8] Fuel: 49,700 litres (10,900 imp gal) / 58,700 litres (12,900 imp gal);[4]a fresh water: 10,900 litres (2,400 imp gal) / 15,500 litres (3,400 imp gal)[4]a

Bayesian was a 56-metre (184 ft) sailing superyacht, built as Salute by Perini Navi at Viareggio, Italy, and delivered in 2008.[9] It had a 72-metre (237 ft) mast, one of the tallest in the world. The yacht was last refitted in 2020.[10] It was in the legal ownership of Angela Bacares, wife of the technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch.[11][12] It was at anchor off the northern coast of Sicily near Porticello on 19 August 2024, when it was struck shortly before dawn by a powerful storm and sank.[13]

Design and construction

[edit]

Bayesian was a flybridge sloop designed by Ron Holland[1] and built by Perini Navi with a 56 m (184 ft) long aluminium hull and superstructure and a single-masted cutter rig. One of the world's largest sailing yachts, it was one of a number of similar vessels from this designer and shipyard, though the only one of their ten 56-metre series that, at the initial client's request, was not a two-masted[14] ketch. The mast of 72 m (237 ft), as measured from the design waterline (DWL), was at the time of construction the world's tallest yacht mast and continues to be the world's tallest aluminium one. The yacht had a retracting keel, allowing its draught to be reduced from 10 m (33 ft) to 4 m (13 ft).[7] It had a traditional aft cockpit and an additional 60 m2 (650 sq ft) fully-encloseable cockpit forward. The interior was outfitted in Japanese style by the French company Rémi Tessier Design.[15] The yacht won best interior at the International Superyacht Society Awards 2008, and best sailing yacht over 45 m (148 ft) at the 2009 World Superyacht Awards.[16]

History

[edit]

The yacht, allocated IMO Number 9503392, was ordered by Dutch entrepreneur Eric Albada Jelgersma [nl] (1939–2018), but in 2005 he was paralysed in a yachting accident; on completion it was sold in 2008 to Dutch property developer John Groenewoud and named Salute.[1][17][18] In November 2014, it was sold to Revtom Ltd., an Isle of Man company owned by Angela Bacares, wife of the technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch, and renamed Bayesian,[1][18] a reference to Bayesian inference, which was used in statistical machine learning by Lynch's company Autonomy Corporation.[2] From then, the yacht was registered in the United Kingdom, with London as port of registry. It was refitted in 2016 and again in 2020 and was managed since 2022 by Camper & Nicholsons International.[1][18][19] The yacht had been put up for sale in the spring of 2024 but was withdrawn from the market in July for the summer.[20]

Sinking and aftermath

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Sinking

[edit]

Lynch was celebrating his acquittal for fraud in his trial in San Francisco and had invited lawyers, friends and associates to join him, his wife and their daughter, to visit the Aeolian Islands, off the northern coast of Sicily.[21] Bayesian sank shortly before daybreak on 19 August 2024 during a storm when anchored 300 metres (980 ft) off the port of Porticello, a small fishing village about 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Palermo, Sicily.[21][22] Admiral Raffaele Macauda of the Palermo coastguard said there was no storm alert for that evening and the weather forecast was of isolated thunderstorms but not of any extreme weather systems.[23][24] Karsten Borner, captain of Sir Robert Baden Powell anchored nearby said that, in the event, the wind was "violent, very violent" and thought it reached force 12 on the Beaufort scale — hurricane strength. He said: "It was tonnes of water coming down. I never saw that before, there was a water tornado".[24] Although early eyewitness accounts led to reports that the yacht had been struck by a waterspout, the Italian authorities said a downburst was more likely.[25]

Bayesian's captain said that the yacht tilted by 45 degrees and stayed in that position for some time, then suddenly fell completely to the right.[26]

Data from the tracking of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) showed that at 3.50 CEST Bayesian was already being buffeted by the storm and then began to drag its anchor. At 4.05 it was entirely underwater and a few seconds later its emergency position-indicating radiobeacon (EPIRB) raised the alarm, which was picked up by the satellite station managed by the Bari Coast Guard.[27] Power had been lost by 3.56 as electrical circuits became flooded. Borner said: "I have never seen a vessel of this size go down so quickly. Within a few minutes, there was nothing left." The yacht came to rest on its starboard side on the seabed at a depth of 50 metres (160 ft).[28]

Rescue and recovery

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The yacht had been carrying 10 crew and 12 passengers. The 15 survivors were rescued from their inflatable life raft by Borner and his crew. One body was recovered from the sea, while six people remained missing.[29][21] Divers from the fire and rescue service immediately began searching the wreck. The task was challenging on account of the depth, which limited divers to eight minutes to work on the wreck. They also found access to the cabins was blocked by furniture.[21] Six bodies were eventually recovered from the interior of the yacht on 21, 22 and 23 August.[30][31] The yacht was lying on its right side on the sea-floor, and the bodies of the passengers were found in cabins on the left side where, investigators suggested, they had been taking refuge.[32] Post-mortem examinations revealed that four of the deceased had no water in their lungs, suggesting they had died of asphyxiation, in an air pocket, some time after the sinking.[33]

Survivors

[edit]

The 15 survivors were Angela Bacares and five guests, captain James Cutfield, and eight other members of the crew.[34][35]

Dead

[edit]
  • Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley International and past chairman of Autonomy Corporation[36]
  • Judy Bloomer, wife of Jonathan Bloomer[36]
  • Mike Lynch, founder of Autonomy Corporation and Invoke Capital[36]
  • Hannah Lynch, daughter of Mike Lynch[31]
  • Christopher J. Morvillo, partner at Clifford Chance US LLP and Lynch's lawyer[36]
  • Neda Morvillo (née Nassiri),[37] jewellery designer and wife of Christopher Morvillo[36]
  • Recaldo Thomas, the yacht's chef[36]

On 25 August, a special mass and candle-lit vigil were held for the victims in Porticello and wreaths were laid on the sea.[38]

Speculation about causes

[edit]

In the immediate aftermath of the sinking, there was media speculation about how Bayesian could have sunk so quickly, especially as a nearby yacht was undamaged in the storm.[39] The editor of Sailing Today suggested that the exceptionally tall mast might have affected the yacht's stability, while the chair of the Maritime Search and Rescue Council described the sinking as a potential black swan event.[39] A former captain of Bayesian said that ventilation ducts on the yacht were vulnerable to downflooding over 40-45 degrees of heel.[8] A naval architect interviewed by a yachting magazine opined that the low positioning of the cockpits and a heavy salon door that could slide open were also possible ingress points for downflooding.[40] Turkish TV interviewed a yacht builder who suggested that a hatch might have been open or that a door might have been open between watertight compartments, and an oceanographer who suggested that the wide beam might have contributed to the wind pinning the yacht and that the height of the mast might have prevented turtling after it capsized.[41] A photograph that was taken from the Sir Robert Baden Powell, 14 minutes before the sinking, however, shows the large door on the port side of the hull was closed.[42]

Luca Mercalli, president of the Italian Meteorological Society, said that the authorities had issued a moderate weather alert, and that weather radar enabled the arrival of an intense thunderstorm to be estimated 15 to 30 minutes in advance, although it was impossible to predict the level of wind intensity. He said that record high sea surface temperatures around Sicily at the time could have increased the intensity of storms in the area.[43] Giovanni Costantino, chief executive officer of The Italian Sea Group, which now owned the shipyard which built the yacht, defended its design, describing it as "unsinkable" and suggested the crew should, given the approaching storm, have shut doors and hatches, started the engine, lowered the keel and faced the wind.[39] He pointed to the fact that Sir Robert Baden Powell, built in 1957, had not been damaged in the storm.[44] The seafarers' union Nautilus International cautioned against blaming the crew before the full facts were known, saying it was "not only unfair but also harmful to the process of uncovering the truth and learning any lessons from this tragedy".[22]

Judicial investigation and salvage

[edit]

The chief prosecutor of nearby Termini Imerese, Ambrogio Cartosio, initiated a judicial investigation into the sinking.[30] On 26 August, the captain of the yacht was placed under investigation.[45] On 28 August, two British crew members were also put under investigation.[46] As Bayesian was a UK-registered vessel, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch also opened an investigation into the causes of the sinking and sent a team of four inspectors to Italy.[47][48] Cartosio said that there were plans to salvage Bayesian. Under Italian law, the owner is responsible for the cost of salvage and the yacht would then be handed to the investigating authorities.[49] The recovery cost will be covered by insurance while total claims related to the shipwreck could reach $150m, according to initial estimates by industry experts.[50]

See also

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Notes

[edit]

^a From the site's technical data and plans section and downloadable brochure respectively.[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Montgomery, Samuel (20 August 2024). "Inside the £30m Bayesian superyacht". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b Picchi, Aimee (20 August 2024). "Here's what to know about Mike Lynch, the tech tycoon missing in the Sicily yacht disaster – CBS News". CBS News. Archived from the original on 20 August 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Bayesian (9503392)". Equasis. Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "S/Y 56m BAYESIAN formerly Salute". Perini Navi. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d Lynch, Niamh (23 August 2024). "What we know about the Bayesian superyacht that sank". Sky News. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Bayesian yacht". Yacht Charter Fleet. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "What caused the fatal sinking of the superyacht Bayesian?". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Two More Crewmembers of Sunken Yacht Bayesian Are Under Investigation". Maritime Executive. 28 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  9. ^ Damborsky, Katia; Margerrison, Holly (19 August 2024). "Latest: British tech giant Mike Lynch among those missing after 56m Perini Navi sailing yacht Bayesian sinks in Italy". Boat International. Archived from the original on 20 August 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  10. ^ Vagnoni, Giselda (21 August 2024). "Four bodies retrieved from Mike Lynch's sunken yacht in Sicily". Reuters. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  11. ^ Grierson, Jamie; Weaver, Matthew; Tondo, Lorenzo (22 August 2024). "Mike Lynch confirmed dead after yacht sank off Sicily coast during storm". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Il Veliero Bayesian, Una Nave Super Lusso con l'Albero in Alluminio Più Grande del Mondo" [The Bayesian Sailing Ship, A Super Luxury Ship With The World's Largest Aluminum Mast]. TgCom24. 19 August 2024. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  13. ^ Lowen, Mark. Seddon, Sean (ed.). "Bayesian yacht Sicily latest: UK tycoon Mike Lynch, 18-year-old daughter, and chef among missing after yacht sinks". BBC News. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  14. ^ "Il naufragio di Porticello, l'ipotesi dell'architetto del Bayesian: "Il portellone laterale aperto ha fatto entrare l'acqua"" [The shipwreck of Porticello, the hypothesis of the Bayesian architect: "The open side door let the water in]. Palermo Today. 26 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  15. ^ "Perini Navi launches 56 metre cutter Salute". Superyacht Times. 13 February 2008. Archived from the original on 20 August 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  16. ^ "Inside the £30m superyacht". The Telegraph. 20 August 2024. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  17. ^ van Riessen, Paul (22 June 2018). "In memoriam: 'wilde Eric' Albada Jelgersma (1939–2018)". Quote (in Dutch). Amsterdam: Hearst Netherlands. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  18. ^ a b c "Bayesian (9503392)". Equasis. Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy. Retrieved 21 August 2024.[dead link]
  19. ^ Jefferies, Chris (12 June 2016). "Perini Navi sloop Bayesian begins Mallorca refit". Boat International. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  20. ^ Stringer, Connor (22 August 2024). "Mike Lynch considered selling doomed superyacht before trip". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  21. ^ a b c d Tondo, Lorenzo (23 August 2024). "'I've never seen a vessel this size go down so quickly': why did the Bayesian sink in 60 seconds?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  22. ^ a b Lowen, Mark (25 August 2024). "The 16 minutes that plunged the Bayesian yacht into a deadly spiral". BBC News. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  23. ^ "Naufragio Bayesian, le rivelazioni: «Evento repentino e improvviso. Portelloni aperti? Ancora non si sa»". La Sicilia. 24 August 2024. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  24. ^ a b Giusti, Marianna; Ricozzi, Giuliana (24 August 2024). "Italy opens manslaughter probe into Lynch superyacht sinking". Financial Times. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  25. ^ "Sicily yacht sinking most likely caused by 'downburst'". BBC. 24 August 2024.
  26. ^ "Crew members on Mike Lynch yacht tell of moments it sank off Sicily". Reuters. 1 September 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  27. ^ Fasano, Giusi (25 August 2024). "Naufragio Bayesian, 'nessun allarme dell'equipaggio ai dodici ospiti'. Il razzo di emergenza sparato quando il veliero si era già inabissato" [Bayesian shipwreck: 'no alarm from the crew to the twelve guests'. The emergency rocket fired when the sailing ship had already sunk]. Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  28. ^ Prentice, Heather (29 August 2024). "Tragic sinking of superyacht Bayesian; Italian prosecutors investigate". Yachting Monthly. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  29. ^ Howard, Jacqueline; Cheetham, Joshua (19 August 2024). "UK tech tycoon among missing after yacht sinks". BBC News. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  30. ^ a b David, Barney (22 August 2024). "Mike Lynch: Seven key unanswered questions around the sinking of the Bayesian". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  31. ^ a b Tondo, Lorenzo; Dugan, Emily (23 August 2024). "Mike Lynch yacht: possibility of manslaughter charges as final body found". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  32. ^ Clarke-Billings, Lucy (24 August 2024). "Five things we learned from Sicily yacht press conference". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  33. ^ Ghiglione, David (5 September 2024). "Four victims of Bayesian sinking suffocated in air pocket - reports". BBC News. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  34. ^ Aikman, Ian; Asaf, Seher (22 August 2024). "Sicily yacht sinking: Who are the missing and rescued?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  35. ^ Bennett, Tom (22 August 2024). "Bayesian sinking: The key questions for investigators". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  36. ^ a b c d e f Evans, Holly (19 August 2024). "Mike Lynch yacht latest: Search for daughter Hannah continues as coastguard identifies billionaire's body". The Independent. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  37. ^ Coulter, Christina (20 August 2024). "High powered attorney missing in superyacht tragedy with designer wife wrote eerie post before disappearance". Fox News. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  38. ^ "'Heartfelt' Mass and vigil held by local Sicilian community for victims of superyacht sinking". The Catholic Herald. 26 August 2024. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  39. ^ a b c Wells, Andy (25 August 2024). "The theories on what caused the Bayesian superyacht to sink so quickly". yahoo!news. Archived from the original on 26 August 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  40. ^ Naval architect discusses Bayesian yacht sinking. Power and Motoryacht. 28 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  41. ^ The Bayesian: Superyacht sinking. Turkish Radio and Television Corporation. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  42. ^ "Photo 'shows Bayesian door was shut minutes before superyacht sank'". The Standard. 3 October 2024.
  43. ^ "Mediterranean's weather becoming more dangerous". Daily Telegraph. 20 August 2024. Archived from the original on 21 August 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  44. ^ "Mike Lynch yacht sinking must be due to human error, boss of boat builder says". The Guardian. 30 August 2024.
  45. ^ Tondo, Lorenzo (26 August 2024). "Captain of Mike Lynch's yacht under investigation for manslaughter". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  46. ^ Lynch, Niamh (28 August 2024). "Two British crew members on Bayesian superyacht under investigation". Sky News. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  47. ^ "Current investigations". Southampton: Marine Accident Investigation Branch. 21 August 2024. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  48. ^ Dickerson, Claire Gilbody (22 August 2024). "How is the sinking of Mike Lynch's Bayesian superyacht being investigated?". Sky News. Archived from the original on 23 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  49. ^ Latza Nadeau, Barbie (26 August 2024). "Bayesian yacht captain faces manslaughter probe after deadly sinking in Sicily". CNN. Archived from the original on 27 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  50. ^ Hussain, Noor Zainab; Cohn, Carolyn (29 August 2024). "Sunk superyacht likely to cost insurers at least $150 million, experts say". Reuters. Retrieved 3 September 2024.