Tech tycoon Mike Lynch’s superyacht, Bayesian, was knocked over by “extreme wind” and could not recover, investigators examining last year’s tragic sinking have said.
An interim report into the disaster also found that “vulnerabilities” were “unknown to either the owner or the crew of Bayesian” as they were not included in the stability information book carried on board.
It also revealed how two guests used furniture drawers “as an improvised ladder” to escape their cabin.
Billionaire entrepreneur Mr Lynch, 59, and his daughter Hannah, 18, were among seven people who died when the 56-metre vessel sank off the coast of Sicily on 19 August 2024.
The report by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) shows wind speeds of 63.4 knots (73.0mph) on the vessel’s beam were sufficient to tip it over, and it may have been “vulnerable” to lighter winds.
The vessel was in a “motoring condition” with its sails lowered and the centreboard — which is used to help stabilise it — was in a “raised” position, the report said.
Inquest proceedings in Britain are looking at the deaths of Mr Lynch and his daughter, as well as Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, 70, and his wife, Judy Bloomer, 71, who were all British nationals.
The others who died in the sinking were US lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, and Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the vessel.
Fifteen people, including Mr Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, were rescued.
An undated photo provided by the Lynch family, showing Mike and Hannah Lynch (Photo: Lynch family, via AP)The MAIB report stated that during the previous day, the Bayesian was sailed to the site where it later sank in order to “shelter” from forecast thunderstorms.
At 3am the following morning the wind speed was “no more than eight knots (9mph)” but a deck hand thought “thunderclouds and lightning seemed to be getting closer”.
Some 55 minutes later the deck hand posted a video of the advancing storm on social media, then went onto the deck to close windows to protect the interior from rain.
They noted that the wind had reached 30 knots (34.5mph) and thought the vessel was dragging its anchor.
At 4.06am local time, wind speeds exceeded 70 knots (80.6mph), “violently” knocking the vessel over to a 90-degree angle in under 15 seconds, investigators said, and “people, furniture and loose items fell across the deck”.
It went on: “There was no indication of flooding inside Bayesian until water came in over the starboard rails and, within seconds, entered the internal spaces down the stairwells.”
Several crew members were working in response to the conditions when the vessel was knocked over.
Five people were injured “either by falling or from things falling on them”, while the deck hand was “thrown into the sea”, the report said, and two guests used furniture drawers “as an improvised ladder”.
The skipper instructed guests and crew on an area of the deck to “swim clear of the mast and boom as the vessel was sinking”.
Survivors later made their way onto a life raft released from the Bayesian.
They went on to be rescued on a small boat dispatched by yacht Sir Robert Baden Powell, which was also at anchor nearby.
The Bayesian may have had a vulnerability to high winds (Photo: Yacht Charter Fleet/ www.yachtcharterfleet.com/luxury-charter-yacht-22774/bayesian-photos.htm)The MAIB said its report was based on “a limited amount of verified evidence” as a criminal investigation by Italian authorities has restricted its access to the wreck and other pieces of evidence.
Simon Graves, an MAIB investigator, told the PA news agency: “You have the wind pushing the vessel over and then you have the stability of the vessel trying to push the vessel back up right again.
“And what our studies found was that they show that the Bayesian may have been vulnerable to high winds and that these winds were likely to have been evident at the time of the accident.”
Mr Graves said the stability information book did not “consider the effects of wind” because the sails were not raised and the vessel was “running on its engine” before the sinking.
He added: “That indicated a vulnerability that the owner and the crew would not have known about. That information wasn’t included.”
Andrew Moll, chief inspector of marine accidents, said: “The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over.
“Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70° the situation was irrecoverable.
“The results will be refined as the investigation proceeds, and more information becomes available.”
The MAIB is investigating as the Bayesian was registered in the UK.
No date has been set for when the final report will be published.
Mr Lynch founded software giant Autonomy in 1996 and was cleared in June last year of carrying out a massive fraud over the sale of the company to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.
The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal in the case in the US.
With agencies
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