On Friday, rescue teams managed to locate Mike Lynch’s sunken superyacht, which tragically resulted in the loss of his teenage daughter along with five others, nearly ten months after it sank off the coast of Sicily.
The salvage operation, led by TMC Marine, is in its final phases, with plans to lift the vessel from the water scheduled for Saturday.
A statement released by the company noted that, “Accelerating progress in rescue work off the coast of northern Sicily indicates that all preparations are nearing completion before delicate lifting operations begin.”
The recovery efforts had faced a setback last month when a diver lost their life during the operation.
The 184-foot yacht, named Bayesian, had been docked at a small port in Porticero near Palermo when it went down due to a sudden storm last August.
As per an interim report from the UK, violent winds, possibly exceeding 73 mph, contributed to the sinking.
Progress has been made in the recovery after the yacht’s 236-foot mast was detached using remote-controlled cutting devices and subsequently laid on the seabed last Tuesday.
To aid the lifting process, the yacht’s hull is being supported by a specially designed steel wire system connected to a floating lifting apparatus.
Currently, the vessel is positioned between two barges provided by the Dutch salvage company Hebo Maritimeservice.
As reported by Italian Coast Guard sources, salvage teams are reinforcing the cables since the yacht becomes heavier when lifted from the water.
There’s an expectation that the yacht will be transported to the nearby Port of Termini Imereze on Monday, where authorities will take over for further investigation into the incident.
Among those lost were Lynch’s daughter Hannah, lawyer Chris Morvillo and his spouse Nida, banker Jonathan Bloomer with his wife Judy, and chef Ricardo Thomas. Fortunately, nine other crew members and six guests were rescued during the ordeal.
