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Steven Spielberg Just Sold His Prized 282-Foot Superyacht ‘Seven Seas’

The luxurious vessel was last listed for $160 million., rachel cormack.

Digital Editor

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It’s a wrap for Steven Spielberg’s superyacht Seven Seas .

The world-famous director finally sold his epic 282-footer last week to an unknown buyer, according to Merle Wood & Associates . Although the brokerage firm did not specificity the amount paid, the vessel, now known as Man of Steel , was listed earlier this year for $160 million . Thom Conboy of Denison Yachting represented the buyer, who is apparently a longtime repeat client.

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The blockbuster yacht, built by noted shipyard Oceanco to Spielberg’s exact specifications, first hit the seas back in 2010. The Academy Award winner, who has a net worth of $3.7 billion, spared no expense when designing his dream machine, and this is the first time it has been offered for sale.

Of course, there is a cinema onboard.  Merle Wood & Associates

The glitzy interior, which was penned by Nuvolari & Lenard and Molly Isaksen, spans four decks and offers ample space for entertaining A-listers. The vessel can accommodate 20 guests across nine generous staterooms, as well as 28 crew. The scene-stealer is, of course, Spielberg’s owner’s suite, which features a full-beam stateroom with ensuite and dressing room, along with an office and a terrace with its own private jacuzzi.

Naturally, Seven Seas is brimming with amenities fit for film royalty, including supersized screens in every room and a full movie theater. Elsewhere, there is a sauna, steam room, gym, pool, huge beach club, helipad and countless lounge areas and bars. As expected, there’s also a fully-stocked garage packed with a tender, speedboat, water toys and diving gear.

Seven Seas comes equipped with plenty of toys.  Merle Wood & Associates

Spielberg ensured Seven Seas lived up to her name, too. Over the past decade, the 74-year-old has taken the go-anywhere superyacht all across the seven seas. It’s been spotted sailing off the coast of France during the Cannes Film Festival, and, more recently, on the waters near Antigua and Barbuda. The yacht’s transatlantic capability comes courtesy of twin MTU engines packing 4,680 hp each. She can hit a top speed of 20 knots or cruise at a more leisurely 15 knots.

Now that Spielberg has called cut on Seven Seas , we are patiently awaiting his next marine masterpiece.

Check out more photos below:

Merle Wood & Associates

Rachel Cormack is a digital editor at Robb Report. She cut her teeth writing for HuffPost, Concrete Playground, and several other online publications in Australia, before moving to New York at the…

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The Incredible Features Of Steven Spielberg's $160 Million Superyacht

In 2021, the Seven Seas, the luxury yacht belonging to billionaire movie director Steven Spielberg, was sold to billionaire steel magnate Barry Zekelman after being listed for almost $158 million earlier in the year (via Bloomberg ).

Spielberg first commissioned the 282-foot yacht in 2010. The superyacht was designed by Oceanco, a luxury shipbuilding company from the Netherlands. If the name sounds familiar, this company has also recently built a superyacht for Amazon founder  Jeff Bezos . The Seven Seas was custom-made for the award-winning film director and has lots of amenities and high-end features. It's a powerful ship that can hit a top speed of 20 knots and a cruising speed of 15 knots. The yacht also has two MTU engines, which provide a walloping 4,680 horsepower each, according to Robb Report .

In the past, this yacht has been sailing all over and has been seen cruising off the coast of France during the Cannes Film Festival, and in the Caribbean near the islands of Antigua and Barbuda.

It's decked out inside

The Seven Seas has four spacious decks and plenty of room for relaxing and entertaining guests. It features nine cabins that can accommodate up to 20 people, plus 28 crew members. The owner's suite for Spielberg is gorgeous and has a deck with a jacuzzi, office, and private terrace. It also has a full-beam VIP stateroom on the main deck with several other cabins on the lower deck (via Robb Report and Superyacht Times ).

Designers Nuvolari Lenard and Molly Isaksen collaborated to create the boat's lush wooden-themed interior (via Architectural Digest ). As would be expected, a yacht as opulent as the Seven Seas is jam-packed with amenities for Spielberg and his guests to enjoy. Published photos of the Seven Seas show jumbo screens in every room and a home cinema onboard. You can also find a sauna, steam room, gym, massage room, lounge areas, bars, and a swimming pool. This yacht is so large it can even accommodate a helipad. Like other superyachts, it comes with the standard garage where you can fit speedboats, water toys, and diving gear.

Now that Steven Spielberg has sold his yacht, fans just have to wait and see if another mega yacht is coming in the future.

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Does this 357-Foot New Yacht Belong to Steven Spielberg?

Oceanco is keeping details of the mammoth vessel’s owner under wraps.

By Irenie Forshaw

Oceanco is used to catering for the fabulously wealthy; earlier this year the Dutch shipbuilder delivered Jeff Bezos’s gleaming new ship , Koru. Now, the rumor mill is going into overdrive once again. This time, Steven Spielberg is reportedly the billionaire behind its newest yacht: Seven Seas.

Spanning 357 feet, the mammoth motoryacht isn’t as long as Koru – which scooped the title of the longest sailing yacht on the planet at 417 ft – but she does cut an impressive figure. This isn’t Spielberg’s first foray into the yachting world – the Hollywood director had his first ship (also called Seven Seas ) delivered by Oceanco back in 2010.

The original Seven Seas – whose name is inspired by Spielberg’s seven children – measured 282 feet and boasted an expansive spa , gym, beauty salon, and, of course, movie theatre. But the four-time Academy Award winner sold the ship to Canadian billionaire Barry Zekelman in 2021 for a cool $151m (the ship has since been renamed Man of Steel).

It seems Spielberg has caught the superyacht bug; the new Seven Seas is even bigger and more lavish than her predecessor. So, what do we know about the director’s latest ship? While Oceanco has remained relatively tight-lipped on the project, a few key details have emerged which we’ll dive into here.

[See also: The Best Luxury Yacht Builders in the World]

Who is building Steven Spielberg’s new yacht?

The superyacht – previously known as project Y720 – was commissioned back in 2022 for a whopping $250m. She was built by Oceanco – the same shipyard that made Spielberg’s old boat in Alblasserdam, a town in the western Netherlands around 12 miles from Rotterdam. Omani billionaire businessman Mohammed al Barwani bought the luxury shipyard back in 2010 (he also owns Turquoise Yachts in Istanbul).

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Oceanco has an impressive track record when it comes to building jaw-dropping superyachts. As well as recently unveiling Bezos’s Koru, four years ago the shipbuilder delivered Black Pearl – a striking three-mast vessel which, at 350 ft, became the largest sailing yacht in the world at the time, and garnered attention for its cutting-edge eco-credentials.

What do we know about the design?

Oceanco collaborated with Dutch firm Sinot Yacht Architecture Design to build Spielberg’s new yacht. The project was overseen by Lateral Naval Architects, with the team carrying out an “extensive optimization process” to ensure Seven Seas met the highest performance standards (she is the first LY3-compliant yacht to feature a Marine Evacuation System).

Powered by twin MTU 20V 4000 M73L diesel engines, she is able to reach top speeds of up to 20 knots and weighs in at 4,444 GT. Her sleek steel hull, teak deck, and lightweight aluminum superstructure give her a graceful silhouette; this is certainly a yacht to turn heads.

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Considerably larger than Spielberg’s former yacht, Seven Seas 2.0 can host up to 14 guests across seven cabins (so there’s plenty of space for his entire family). There’s also room onboard for up to 30 crew, plus a gym, pool, spa, beach club, helipad and tender garage. Oh, and there’s a movie theatre too. Obviously.

The fourth largest project delivered by Oceanco to date, she was glimpsed for the first time in March 2022 being rolled out of the construction shed at the shipyard and was spotted in the Port of Gibraltar in early July.

How about the interiors?

It’s extremely unlikely we’ll get to see inside Spielberg’s new yacht anytime soon, but we do know the interiors onboard Seven Seas have been crafted by Beverly Hills-based designer Molly Isaksen (in a telling sign she was also brought in for the interiors onboard Man of Steel ).

While details remain sparse, Oceanco did reveal we can expect plenty of “natural materials and glass onboard, offering guests an unparalleled outward-looking experience”.

oceancoyacht.com

[See also: Twenty for 20: Innovative Yachts of the 21 st Century]

Irenie Forshaw

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SEVEN SEAS yacht NOT for charter*

109m  /  357'7 | oceanco | 2023.

Owner & Guests

Cabin Configuration

• Previous Yacht

Special Features:

• Built in 2023
• Lloyds Register ✠ 100A1 SSC Yacht Mono, G6, ECO(IHM) ✠ LMC UMS classification
• Interior design from Sinot Yacht Design
• Up to 35 crew

The 109m/357'7" motor yacht 'Seven Seas' was built by Oceanco in the Netherlands at their Alblasserdam shipyard. Her interior is styled by Dutch designer design house Sinot Yacht Design and she was delivered to her owner in July 2023. This luxury vessel's exterior design is the work of Sinot Yacht Design.

Guest Accommodation

Seven Seas has been designed to comfortably accommodate up to 14 guests in 7 suites. She is also capable of carrying up to 35 crew onboard to ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience.

Onboard Comfort & Entertainment

Her features include sauna, satellite communications, underwater lights, deck jacuzzi, WiFi and air conditioning.

Range & Performance

Seven Seas is built with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure, with teak decks. Seven Seas comfortably cruises at 15 knots, reaches a maximum speed of 18 knots. She was built to Lloyds Register ✠ 100A1 SSC Yacht Mono, G6, ECO(IHM) ✠ LMC UMS classification society rules.

*Charter Seven Seas Motor Yacht

Motor yacht Seven Seas is currently not believed to be available for private Charter. To view similar yachts for charter , or contact your Yacht Charter Broker for information about renting a luxury charter yacht.

Seven Seas Yacht Owner, Captain or marketing company

'Yacht Charter Fleet' is a free information service, if your yacht is available for charter please contact us with details and photos and we will update our records.

Seven Seas Photos

NOTE to U.S. Customs & Border Protection

Specification

M/Y Seven Seas

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Everything I Learned Aboard Luxury Ship Regent Seven Seas Grandeur

Not many people get the chance to experience their first cruise aboard the Regent Seven Seas Grandeur, which is one of six Regent Seven Seas ships in “The World’s Most Luxurious Fleet”, but Johanna Thornton did just that with a 10-day cruise from Venice, Italy to Athens, Greece, cruising the stunning Mediterranean and Ionian Sea.

Seven Seas Grandeur is Regent’s newest ship, launched in November 2023, with a reputation for exceptional service, luxurious suites, excellent dining, and all-inclusive offerings. There was a lot to discover about the art of cruising on this once-in-a-lifetime trip, which departed from Venice, Italy and sailed to some of Europe’s most stunning destinations, like Santorini and Istanbul. Here are some learnings.

It pays to get the terminology correct

Port, starboard, aft, bow. Nautical terminology is par for the course on a cruise and I made my first faux pas before I’d even boarded Regent Seven Seas Grandeur, telling fellow passengers how excited I was to board the “boat” as we waited on the dock in Venice. “It’s a ship, not a boat. Ships carry boats,” a fellow cruiser quickly corrected me. “That’s something you want to get right before you board.” As someone aiming to look like I belonged on a luxury cruise, I deleted boat from my vocabulary.

Your suite won’t be ready when you do get on board

Cruise ships run a strict schedule, and often the day of boarding for new guests is the day of departure for the previous. Staff need time to turn around the suites and for most guests arriving on the day of departure, it’ll mean a welcome Champagne (or two or three) and lunch at La Veranda restaurant on the pool deck. This is hardly a chore, and only adds to the excitement of the room reveals later in the afternoon, which is broadcast over the ship’s speaker system from the captain’s deck.

Suite layouts range from 28.5 square metres to 413sq m

Yes, 413. Of the 15 suite categories on board, the Regent Suite is the ship’s largest and grandest. It features two bedrooms (plus a separate guest bedroom and bathroom, for staff, one would assume), a spacious living room with a separate sitting and dining area, three walk-in closets (three!) and two marble and stone bathrooms. There’s also an in-room spa with a sauna, steam room and unlimited access to spa treatments.

Exceptionally elegant, the Regent Suite’s living room rivals the world’s best luxury hotels with only the finest furnishings, artwork and accessories. The wrap-around balcony overlooks the bow and there’s even a glass-enclosed parlour that allows you to enjoy the view but escape the sea breeze. The price tag for this ultra-luxurious suite ($NZ18,000 NZD per night) includes a butler, a driver for personalised shore excursions, and daily canapes and caviar.

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My suite, the Superior Suite, is 38sq m, which is bigger than my first apartment. I arrived to a bottle of Veuve in a Champagne bucket, chocolate-dipped strawberries on a silver tray, and the minibar stocked with cold drinks.

The suite is comfortable, with a sitting area that closes off from the bed with floor-to-ceiling curtains and a private balcony with room for two lounge chairs. I’m sharing a suite with my mum, and our sleeping arrangements are two beautifully made king singles, with individual nightstands and reading lights, and room to store our luggage underneath. We’d later marvel at the exceptional quality of the 1000 thread-count, Egyptian cotton sheets, which are so famous on board they’re available for guests to buy . In the marble-accented bathroom, there are two sinks, a full-size marble bath and a generous rain shower The complimentary toiletries are L’Occitane, replenished daily, and the towels are oversized, white and fluffy. The best part? A handsome dark wood walk-in wardrobe with all the space you could ever need.

Everything is free, well nearly everything

Regent Seven Seas Cruises is an all-inclusive luxury cruise line, which means for Australian and New Zealand guests the ticket price covers unlimited complimentary shore excursions, dinner and drinks at the speciality restaurants, fine wines and spirits at the cocktail lounges, entertainment, internet access, valet laundry, gratuities, a fully stocked mini bar, and one-night pre-cruise hotel packages for guests staying in Concierge-level suites and higher.

It took me a week to adjust to ordering whatever I wanted at breakfast, lunch and dinner and then just walking out without paying. It’s an exhilarating feeling knowing that nothing on the menu is off limits but we didn’t go overboard when it came to ordering, except for always saying yes to dessert. I’ve heard of people ordering one of everything just because they can on cruises, but on Regent the clientele are used to the good life and I don’t spot many tables heaving with lobster and caviar. Although you’re more than welcome to order extra lobster to add to your lobster bisque, which I saw one diner do.

At The Observation Lounge cocktail bar, you can join friends for pre-dinner drinks and no one has to handle the bill afterwards. It makes socialising a breeze and lowers the stakes of asking someone to join you for dinner when no one has to pay. This experience does ruin you for real life and there’s no greater reality check than the price of a mediocre coffee at Dubai airport.

You can have your minibar stocked with anything you like

As part of the ship’s all-inclusive offering, the mini bar is stocked with an ever-replenished selection of beverages of your choice. Do you want a fresh bottle of chardonnay added every day? Coke? Sparkling water? We found we barely used our minibar with the abundance of food and drink offerings on board the ship. We looked forward to our pre-dinner cocktails in the Observation Lounge or from the Pool Deck bar to enjoy poolside.

There are no tea or coffee facilities available in your room

“There’s no coffee machine in our room?” I exclaimed to Mum on arrival. “This is not going to work.” The absence of a tea and coffee station isn’t an oversight, it’s a safety issue because having appliances plugged in is a fire hazard. Staff on board unplug lamps, hair dryers and chargers as part of their cleaning and turn downs. If you want tea or coffee on board, you can either order it via room service or head to Coffee Connection on level five, where barista-made coffee is on offer, as well as a selection of light refreshments like pastries, toast, fruit, yoghurt and muesli. There’s also high tea in the Meridian Lounge available from 4pm.

There is a dress code and it does get enforced

In the evenings the dress code is “elegant casual” which means a skirt or trousers with a blouse or sweater, a pantsuit or dress for women, and for men it’s trousers and a collared shirt; a sports jacket is optional and ties are not required. Jeans are not permitted, which was a curveball for a lover of great denim. Diners on board definitely make an effort with their dinner attire, especially for the speciality restaurants and dressing for dinner became a highlight of the day for Mum and me. We sailed through a wardrobe of dresses, silk shirts, tailored trousers, blazers and high heels and never felt overdressed – it was fun. The dress code does get enforced too: a friend I made onboard was in one of the cocktail lounges when the clock struck 6pm and was politely asked to vacate because she was wearing her excursion outfit of activewear and sneakers after the allocated time.

The food is excellent

There are seven dining options on board, including five speciality restaurants, and many ship conversations centre around the night’s dinner reservation.

If any space represents the high-octane glamour of Regent Seven Seas Grandeur, it’s Compass Rose, the ship’s largest speciality restaurant and a reliable option for lunch or dinner any day of the journey. Bookings aren’t necessary here and it easily accommodates larger groups, meaning it’s the restaurant of choice for spontaneous dinners with new friends. The wow factor starts at the entry with a sculptural glass and metal waterfall cascading behind the host stand. Inside the dining room, there’s a canopy of crystal-covered “trees” that glow with light, their branches creating a stunning lattice effect on the ceiling. It reminded me of Gothic-style vaulted ceilings inside European churches with grand curved pillars. At Compass Rose, Calcutta marble glitters with a gold vein and crystal-shaped leaves adorn the walls. It’s a sensory overload that extends to the Versace tableware and crystal glassware.

To eat, you can build your dish by choosing from a range of proteins like lobster tail, whole Dover sole, New Zealand lamb chops and Black Angus fillet mignon, adding a sauce (garlic butter, madeira-truffle, green peppercorn to name a few) and a side (lyonnaise potatoes, asparagus or buttered vegetables). You can also choose from the menu of appetisers and chef’s specials or let the executive chef choose with the degustation menu.

Pacific Rim is a standout, the ship’s pan-Asian restaurant offering refined plates of sashimi, pork and shrimp shui mai, duck confit adobo, miso black cod and sticky Chinese barbecue ribs. Like each of the speciality restaurants, Pacific Rim has a unique look and feel, with a palette of elegant black, gold and green and a life-size bonsai cherry tree by Savoy Studios made from bronze and hand-cut glass. Pacific Rim books out quickly so be sure to pre-book before you get on board.

Mum and I had a great night at Prime 7, the interior of which is inspired by a New York City steakhouse with a menu of speciality beef cuts, seafood and iconic starters like jumbo shrimp cocktail and caesar salad. If those dinner options sound run of the mill, the design of the restaurant is anything but. Think glamorous red leather wingback chairs, custom-made onyx and leather chandeliers, bevelled glass surfaces, stitched leather detailing in the ceilings and curved pillars, and even Persian rugs at the rear of the ship.

At Chartreuse, the menu is classic French and the dishes are truly beautiful – possibly the most dazzling on the ship, so have your phone ready. Dine on escargot with anchovy and pommery mustard cream, duck with turnips and cherries and souffle aux fromages (emmenthal and blue cheese souffle).

The interior favours high-octane glamour

Design is by the award-winning Miami-based Studio Dado to a brief of “refined style, matchless elegance, and breath-taking beauty”, and they have certainly hit the mark with surfaces in gold, marble, textured wall coverings, rich wood, bevelled glass and crystals. More is more, baby!

There’s entertainment every night

There’s a lot to keep you busy on board. From swimming in the pool or lounging in the spa (or just relaxing on the pool deck), to a round of mini golf or pickleball on the top deck, a workout in the gym, trivia and cards in the Card Room, shopping at the ship’s luxury boutiques or booking in for a cooking class. There’s also after-dinner entertainment every night at Constellation Theatre, from music to dance and stand up comedy. The 500-seat theatre is impressive, with red velvet-covered swivel seats and chic banquets. If music and dance are your thing, Regent’s own The Grandeur Production Company performs four Broadway-style shows including Pasion, a celebration of the Tango. I went to UK comedian Steven Stevens’ set with a martini in hand and had some good laughs before his show descended into elderly humour and musical theatre, but the audience loved it. The theatre also screens movie nights, playing blockbuster movies like The Beekeeper on the big screen and handing out popcorn.

There’s a spa on board, and it’s very luxe

The Serene Spa & Wellness Centre has one of the most impressive entryways I’ve ever seen, with a marble-lined walkway illuminated with glowing lamps. The spa has exquisite studios for hair and nail treatments and private treatment rooms offering massage, facials and body wraps. There’s also a gym with a daily fitness schedule of Pilates, HIIT, stretching and more. Outside on the stern, a spa and pool are an atmospheric place to hang out when the ship is in motion. You can also enjoy an infrared sauna, cold room and steam room.

Shore excursions take you to some of the wonders of the world

There are free shore excursions at every port, which you can and should book in advance, as the best ones fill up quickly. These range from guided tours to boat rides, wine tastings to city walks, with tour buses parked on the dock ready to transport you to some of the wonders of the world. We loved the guided tour of Ancient Ephesus in Izmir, Turkey, a Unesco world heritage site that has preserved this ancient Roman city and uncovered architectural gems like the terraced houses, which were the palatial houses of the wealthy constructed during the 1st century AD.

In Montenegro, we toured another Unesco site, the Old Town of Kotor, a medieval city enclosed by 20m-high walls and ventured inside the monumental Venetian-style Church of Our Lady’s Temple, which took 120 years to build (1789–1909). While the Old Town was stunning, a highlight of the cruise was sailing out of the Bay of Kotor, which is surrounded by mountainous peaks and the bluest sea, like Montenegro’s answer to Queenstown.

Exploring each port is great, but you’ll grow to love getting back on board at the end of the day

At the start of the cruise, I was concerned about the amount of time we’d be spending on board the ship. Our journey was taking us to amazing places like Santorini in Greece, Kotor in the magical country of Montenegro, and Istanbul in Turkey and I wanted to spend every minute I could soaking up the experiences on shore. But, to my surprise, I began to look forward to returning “home” to the ship.

This crystalised on an incredibly hot day in tourist-filled Santorini, where the cobblestone alleyways were so full of people it was a 40-minute wait to see Oia’s famous blue-roofed St Anastasi church and two hours to queue for the cable cars that would transport us down the hill to the ship. Seven Seas Grandeur, which was anchored within sight in the harbour, looked like an oasis from the busyness of Oia.

Even more so after we opted to take the 600 slippery stone steps down the hill instead of the cable car, past the saddest-looking donkeys dressed up in bells and colourful bridles, waiting in the searing heat to take tourists up the hill (please, don’t ride the donkeys!).

One hour later, sweaty and frazzled, we reached Regent staff waiting with cold towels and water, ready to whisk us away via a short tender ride to the ship where our suites would be immaculately clean, our things put away and the bar staff ready to pour an afternoon spritz. Having everything taken care of, including dinner later that night, is like coming home to a dream. It’s a feeling you can get used to far too quickly.

The library is the best room on the ship

Hushed and quiet, the library became a favourite spot to sit with a book or to catch up on emails. But this was no ordinary library; it was one of the most visually beautiful spaces onboard. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves are laden with reading material which you’re welcome to borrow. The library has an honesty policy, meaning you can take whatever you like to read and bring it back when you’re done. I noted all the latest and greatest best-selling reads, including Eleanor Catton’s Birnam Wood , as well as a solid selection of travel books to plan the next trip of a lifetime. The handsome wooden reading table was popular with guests, containing all the day’s papers from The New York Times to The Guardian .

You can have your laundry done for free – every day

The joy of returning to your suite after a long excursion to find your laundry freshly washed and pressed and waiting for you on a hanger, and your undergarments and socks pressed, folded and wrapped in tissue paper inside a Regent box on your bed cannot be overstated. This service makes returning to real life very hard; if only I could leave a bag full of laundry on my door at home and have it returned in impeccable condition and ready to wear to dinner and drinks that night.

Regent has millions of dollars worth of art on board

The art collection on board is so dazzling that you get used to walking past Picassos on your way to dinner. There are 1600 pieces of art on board, including three Picassos — Toros y Toreros; Antes de picar al toro and Picador picando al toro, con matador al quite — and a very expensive Faberge Egg, Journey in Jewels , displayed inside a glass case near the executive concierge desk. When riding the central glass elevator you can admire the 12-metre handwoven tapestry by Brazilian artist Walter Goldfarb called The Enchanted Tree . Or stroll the length of deck five where the walls are lined with piece after piece, including photography, paintings and tapestries. You can find out more about the artist behind them via the Art Experience guide on the Regent Seven Seas app, which is only available on board.

There are a maximum of 746 guests per sailing, and 548 staff

This ratio of staff to guests ensures the highest level of personal service and means you always feel taken care of, whether you’re lounging on the pool deck, dining at one of the restaurants, or relaxing in your suite. I noticed many return cruisers know the staff by name and vice versa, a testament to the relationships formed on board over the 10 days. The staff go out of their way to make guests feel special by remembering their favourite drink and dietary requirements, setting up room service like a fine dining restaurant with a white tablecloth and silverware, even on your balcony; leaving chocolates on the bed and daily news from your home country, and organising all kinds of special touches — I saw some gold “70″ balloons on a passenger’s suite door one day.

When is the next similar cruise?

Regent Seven Seas Cruises “Icons of Greece” tour from Athens to Venice departs October 5, 2025, for 10 nights, from NZ$17,380 staying in a G2 Veranda suite. For more information visit RSSC.com , phone 0800 625 692 (NZ) or contact your travel adviser.

Johanna Thornton sailed aboard Regent Seven Seas Grandeur courtesy of Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

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• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/6-missing-after-superyacht-sank-off-sicily-including-tech-magnate-celebrating-recent-acquittal

6 missing after superyacht sank off Sicily, including tech magnate celebrating recent acquittal

PORTICELLO, Sicily (AP) — Police divers resumed searching Tuesday for six people believed trapped in the hull of a superyacht that sank in deep seas off Sicily, including a British tech magnate who was celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with the people who had defended him at trial.

The resting place of their sailboat is some 50 meters (164 feet) underwater off Porticello — a depth that requires special precautions: Rescue crews said they were working in 12-minute shifts, a measure that slowed down their efforts to reach the cramped inside of the wreck.

READ MORE: After luxury superyacht sinks off Sicily, British tech magnate Mike Lynch among those missing

The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore when a storm rolled in before 4 a.m. Monday. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.

Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her. One body has been recovered, identified by officials as the on-board chef.

Fire rescue officials have said the other six on board will be considered missing until they are located in the wreckage. They include the tycoon Mike Lynch, who was once hailed as Britain’s king of technology and was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges in a U.S. federal trial related to Hewlett Packard’s $11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp.

Also unaccounted for are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch’s lawyers, and Jonathan Bloomer, a chairman at Morgan Stanley International and the former head of the Autonomy audit committee who testified in Lynch’s defense.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which rescued the survivors who managed to get into a lifeboat, said he was close enough to be able to see the Bayesian as the storm came in.

“A moment later, she was gone,” he said. “They said they went flat on the water and were sunk in two minutes,” Borner added, quoting the survivors.

The rotating search teams, each made up of two specialized cave divers, worked Tuesday to open up access points to get inside the wreck, which lies at a depth far beyond what most recreational divers are certified to reach.

The divers have not yet been able to access the below-deck cabins because they were blocked by furniture that had shifted during the violent storm. Rescue crews said they assume the missing six are in those cabins because the storm struck when most would be sleeping, but the teams haven’t verified their presence there through portholes.

Luca Cari, a spokesman for the rescue teams, said the search was proceeding much more slowly than another big shipwreck in Italy, the 2012 Costa Concordia cruise ship that flipped on its side off Tuscany’s coast, because of the depth of the wreck and the space divers have to maneuver.

“That was much simpler. Here everything is more tight,” he said.

The outing was intended at least in part as a celebration of Lynch’s acquittal and a “looking forward to what was coming next,” said Reid Weingarten, a Washington attorney and a member of Lynch’s defense team who was not on the yacht.

“A lot of people went, a lot of people were planning to go and then of course this happened,” Weingarten said.

Some of the people who stood by Lynch throughout the ordeal were on board, including Morvillo, the lawyer, who Weingarten worked with and said “was like a brother.”

Morvillo’s wife is also missing, according to his law firm Clifford Chance.

Aki Hussain, CEO of international insurer Hiscox Group, where Bloomer, the witness, was chairman, said the company was “deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event.”

“Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation,” he added.

Charlotte Golunski, who survived the disaster, said she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter Sofia in the water, but then managed to hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, Italian news agency ANSA reported.

The father, identified by ANSA as James Emslie, also survived, as did Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares. Hannah Lynch, reportedly the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, is among the missing.

The yacht’s registered owner is listed as Revtom Ltd., according to online maritime database Equasis. Bacares is listed as Revtom’s sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

Its name, Bayesian, may be a reference to “Bayesian Inference,” one of the two main approaches to statistical machine learning and the one that was used by Lynch’s company.

The yacht, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, was carrying 12 passengers and 10 crew. According to online charter companies, it had been available for charter for 195,000 euros (about $215,000) a week and was notable for its massive 75-meter-tall (246-foot-tall) aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.

In an unrelated event, Lynch’s co-defendant in the Autonomy trial who was also cleared, Stephen Chamberlain, was killed Sunday when he was hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire, England, said Chamberlain’s lawyer, Gary Lincenberg.

Winfield reported from Rome. Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington, and Danica Kirka and Kelvin Chan in London, contributed.

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Deep seas and tight spaces impede search for 6 missing after yacht sinks off Sicily

P olice divers resumed searching Tuesday for six people believed trapped in the hull of a superyacht that sank in deep seas off Sicily, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, who was celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with the people who had defended him at trial.

The luxury sailboat, off Porticello near Palermo, was some 165 feet underwater — far deeper than most recreational divers are certified for and a depth that requires special precautions. Recovery crews could only stay for 12-minute shifts, a measure that slowed efforts to reach the cramped inside of the wreck.

Divers tag-teamed the shifts and were using a remote-controlled underwater vehicle, or ROV, to help in the search. They hadn't been able to access the below-deck cabins because they were blocked by furniture that shifted during the violent storm that struck the vessel early Monday. Rescue crews said they assume the missing six are in those cabins because the storm struck when most would be sleeping, but the teams haven’t verified their presence there through portholes.

The Bayesian, a 184-foot British-flagged yacht, was moored about half a mile offshore when a storm rolled in before 4 a.m. Monday. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.

Grainy film from closed-circuit cameras from shore, broadcast on the website of the Giornale di Sicilia, showed the illuminated 246-foot mast of the Bayesian weathering the storm and then disappearing over the course of a minute.

Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her. One body has been recovered, identified by officials as the on-board chef. The rest of the 10-person crew survived, including the captain, whom prosecutors reportedly sought to interview.

The survivors were rescued by a nearby sailboat after getting into a lifeboat.

Lynch, who was once hailed as Britain’s king of technology, was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges in a U.S. federal trial related to Hewlett Packard’s $11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp. His wife, Angela Bacares, survived the sinking. Hannah Lynch, the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, is reportedly unaccounted for.

Also unaccounted for are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch’s lawyers, and Jonathan Bloomer, a chairman at Morgan Stanley International and the former head of the Autonomy audit committee who testified in Lynch’s defense.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which rescued the survivors who managed to get into a lifeboat, said he was close enough to be able to see the Bayesian as the storm came in.

“A moment later, she was gone,” he said. “They said they went flat on the water and were sunk in two minutes," Borner added, quoting the survivors.

Luca Cari, a spokesman for the rescue teams, said the search was proceeding much more slowly than another big shipwreck in Italy, the 2012 Costa Concordia cruise ship that flipped on its side off Tuscany's coast, because of the depth of the wreck and the space divers have to maneuver.

“That was much simpler. Here everything is more tight," he said.

The outing was intended at least in part as a celebration of Lynch's acquittal and a “looking forward to what was coming next,” said Reid Weingarten, a Washington attorney and a member of Lynch’s defense team who was not on the yacht.

Among the survivors, the Emslie-Golunski family was released from Palermo's pediatric hospital on Tuesday. Charlotte Golunski had reported that she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter, Sofia, in the water but then managed to hold her up over the waves until they were both pulled to safety, doctors said.

The father, identified by ANSA news agency as James Emslie, also survived.

“They don't talk much, primarily because they consider themselves survivors and they don't understand why they survived given what they went through,” said Dr. Domenico Cipolla, head of the emergency room at Di Cristina pediatric hospital.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Cipolla said the parents had been in touch with other survivors, who are being housed at a nearby hotel and were waiting for other family members to arrive in Sicily.

The Bayesian, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, is registered to Revtom Ltd., according to online maritime database Equasis. Bacares, Lynch's wife, is listed as Revtom's sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

According to online charter companies, it had been available for charter for about $215,000 a week and was notable for its massive aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.

The coast guard said to date there was no trace of fuel leaks from the wreckage.

In a separate event, Lynch's co-defendant in the Autonomy trial who was also cleared, Stephen Chamberlain, was killed Sunday when he was hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire, England, said Chamberlain's lawyer, Gary Lincenberg.

Associated Press writers Stellacci and Rosa reported from Porticello, Winfield from Rome. AP writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Danica Kirka and Kelvin Chan in London contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .

Deep seas and tight spaces impede search for 6 missing after yacht sinks off Sicily

Police divers resumed searching Tuesday for six people believed trapped in the hull of a superyacht that sank in deep seas off Sicily, including a British tech magnate who was celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with the people who had defended him at trial.

The luxury sailboat, off Porticello near Palermo, was some 50 metres (164 feet) underwater — far deeper than most recreational divers are certified for and a depth that requires special precautions. Recovery crews could only stay for 12-minute shifts, a measure that slowed their efforts to reach the cramped inside of the wreck.

• Download the CTV News App for breaking news alerts and video on all the top stories

Divers tag-teamed the shifts and were using a remote-controlled underwater vehicle, or ROV, to help in the search. They hadn't been able to access the below-deck cabins because they were blocked by furniture that shifted during the violent storm that struck the vessel early Monday. Rescue crews said they assume the missing six are in those cabins because the storm struck when most would be sleeping, but the teams haven’t verified their presence there through portholes.

The Bayesian, a 56-metre (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, was moored about a kilometre (a half-mile) offshore when a storm rolled in before 4 a.m. Monday. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, and sank quickly.

Grainy film from closed-circuit cameras from shore, broadcast on the website of the Giornale di Sicilia, showed the majestic, illuminated 75-metre (246-foot) mast of the Bayesian weathering the storm and then disappearing over the course of a minute.

The survivors were rescued by a nearby sailboat after getting into a lifeboat.

Lynch, who was once hailed as Britain’s king of technology, was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges in a U.S. federal trial related to Hewlett Packard’s US$11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp. His wife, Angela Bacares, survived the sinking. Hannah Lynch, the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, is reportedly unaccounted for.

Also unaccounted for are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch’s lawyers, and his wife, Neda; and Jonathan Bloomer, a chairman at Morgan Stanley International and the former head of the Autonomy audit committee who testified in Lynch’s defense, and his wife.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which rescued the survivors, said he was close enough to see the Bayesian as the storm came in.

“A moment later, she was gone,” he said.

“It’s a great, great tragedy,” said Britain’s ambassador to Italy, Edward Llewellyn, who visited Porticello on Tuesday. Britain sent four investigators to the scene, given the disaster involved a British-flagged ship and British citizens were among the missing.

Luca Cari, a spokesman for the rescue teams, said the search was proceeding much more slowly than another big shipwreck in Italy, the 2012 Costa Concordia cruise ship that flipped on its side off Tuscany's coast, because of the depth of the wreck and the limited space divers have to maneuver.

“That was much simpler. Here everything is more tight," he said.

The outing was intended at least in part as a celebration of Lynch’s acquittal and a “looking forward to what was coming next,” said Reid Weingarten, a Washington attorney and a member of Lynch’s defense team who was not on the yacht.

“A lot of people went, a lot of people were planning to go and then of course this happened,” Weingarten said.

Weingarten worked with Morvillo and said he “was like a brother.”

Aki Hussain, CEO of international insurer Hiscox Group, where Bloomer, the witness, was chairman, said the company was “deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event.”

“Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation,” he added.

Among the survivors, the Emslie family was released from Palermo's pediatric hospital on Tuesday where little Sofia had been kept overnight after her rescue. Her mother, Charlotte Golunski, had reported that she momentarily lost hold of the 1-year-old in the water but then managed to hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, doctors said.

The father, identified by ANSA news agency as James Emslie, also survived.

“They don't talk much, primarily because they consider themselves survivors and they don't understand why they survived given what they went through,” said Dr. Domenico Cipolla, head of the emergency room at Di Cristina pediatric hospital.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Cipolla said Golunski had reported that she and the baby were sleeping in the cabin and suddenly found themselves in the water, where they also found Emslie who had been in a different part of the ship. Cipolla said the parents had been in touch with other survivors, who are being housed at a nearby hotel and were waiting for other family members to arrive in Sicily.

The Bayesian, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, is registered to Revtom Ltd., according to online maritime database Equasis. Bacares, Lynch's wife, is listed as Revtom's sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

According to online charter companies, it had been available for charter for 195,000 euros (about US$215,000) a week and was notable for its massive 75-metre-tall (246-foot-tall) aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.

The coast guard said to date there was no trace of fuel leaks from the wreckage.

In an unrelated event, Lynch's co-defendant in the Autonomy trial who was also cleared, Stephen Chamberlain, was killed Sunday when he was hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire, England, said Chamberlain's lawyer, Gary Lincenberg.

Winfield reported from Rome. Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington, and Danica Kirka and Kelvin Chan in London, contributed. 

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British tech magnate Mike Lynch, 5 others missing after luxury superyacht sinks off Sicily

ROME -- British tech magnate Mike Lynch and five other people were missing after their luxury superyacht sank during a freak storm off Sicily early Monday, Italy's civil protection and authorities said. Lynch's wife and 14 other people survived.

Lynch, who was acquitted in June in a big U.S. fraud trial, was among six people who remain unaccounted for after their chartered sailboat sank off Porticello, near Palermo, sometime after 4 a.m. A tornado over the water known as a waterspout had struck the area overnight, said Salvo Cocina of Sicily's civil protection agency.

One body was recovered, and police divers spent the day trying to reach the hull of the ship, which was resting at a depth of 50 meters (163 feet) off Porticello where it had been anchored, rescue authorities said. They returned to the site after 10 p.m. to see if it would be possible to search through the night, when weather conditions were expected to worsen, said Luca Cari, spokesman of the fire rescue service.

The ship had a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers, the Italian coast guard said. A sudden fierce storm had battered the area overnight, and a waterspout struck precisely where the 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged Bayesian had been moored.

"They were in the wrong place at the wrong time," said Cocina, noting that another big ship nearby, the Sir Robert Baden Powell, wasn't as badly damaged and helped rescue the 15 survivors - including Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares.

The Bayesian was notable for its single 75-meter (246-feet) mast - one of the world's tallest made of aluminum and which was lit up at night, just hours before it sank. Online charter sites listed it for rent for up to 195,000 euros (about $215,000) a week.

One of the survivors, identified as Charlotte Golunski, said she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter Sofia in the water, but then managed to hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, Italian news agency ANSA reported. The father, identified by ANSA as James Emslie, also survived, said Cocina.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, said he had noticed the Bayesian nearby during the storm but after it calmed he saw a red flare and realized the ship had simply disappeared, ANSA and the Giornale di Sicilia newspaper reported. Borner said he and a crew member boarded their tender and found a lifeboat with 15 people, some of them injured, who they then took aboard and alerted the coast guard.

Eight of those rescued were hospitalized while the others were taken to a hotel. One body believed to be the cook was found near the wreck, but six others were unaccounted for and believed inside the hull, said Cari, the fire rescue spokesperson.

The rescue operations, which were visible from shore, involved helicopters and rescue boats from the coast guard, fire rescue and civil protection service.

Fisherman Fabio Cefal ù said he had seen a flare from shore at around 4:30 a.m. and immediately set out to the site but by the time he got there, the Bayesian had already sunk, with only cushions, wood and other items from the superyacht floating in the water.

"But for the rest, we didn't find anyone," he said from the port hours later. He said that he immediately alerted the coast guard and stayed on-site for three hours, but didn't find any survivors. "I think they are inside, all the missing people."

He said he had been up early to check the weather to see if he could go fishing, and surmised that a sudden waterspout had struck the yacht.

"It could be that the mast broke, or the anchor at the prow pulled it, I don't know," he said.

Cocina said the crew and passengers hailed from a variety of countries: In addition to Britain and the United States, passengers and crew were from Antigua, France, Germany, Ireland, Myanmar, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Spain, he said.

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch is deploying a team of four inspectors to Italy to conduct a preliminary assessment. The Foreign Commonwealth and Development office said it was "providing consular support to a number of British nationals and their families."

Dutch foreign ministry spokesperson Casper Soetekouw said the lone Dutch citizen on board, a man, had been rescued and was not in life-threatening condition.

Lynch, once hailed as Britain's king of technology, was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges related to Hewlett Packard's $11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp.

The not guilty verdicts followed an 11-week criminal trial in San Francisco that delved into the history of HP's 2011 acquisition of Autonomy, a business software firm founded by Lynch.

The fraud accusations represented a dramatic turn in the fortunes of an entrepreneur once described as the Bill Gates of Britain - a title he seemed to live up to when he netted an $800 million from the Autonomy sale.

The acquittal vindicated Lynch, who had vehemently denied wrong doing and portrayed HP as a technological train wreck.

"I'm looking forward to returning the UK and getting back to what I love most: my family and innovating in my field," Lynch said in a statement released after the verdict.

The yacht, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, can accommodate 12 passengers in four double cabins, a triple and the master suite, plus crew accommodations, according to Charter World and Yacht Charters.

The vessel, which previously was named Salute when it flew under a Dutch flag, featured a sleek, minimalist interior of light wood with Japanese accents designed by the French designer Remi Tessier, according to descriptions and photos on the charter sites.

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Divers find 4 bodies during search of superyacht wreckage after it sank off Sicily, 2 still missing

ROME -- Divers searching the wreck of a superyacht that sank off Sicily found four bodies Wednesday, as the search continued for two more missing passengers and questions intensified about why the vessel sank so quickly.

Divers and rescue crews unloaded two body bags from the rescue vessels that pulled into port at Porticello. Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicily civil protection agency, said two other bodies had also been found Wednesday in the wreckage for a total of four.

The discovery indicated that the operation to search the hull on the seabed 50 meters (164 feet) underwater was a recovery one, not a rescue, given the amount of time that had passed and no signs of life had emerged over three days of searching, maritime experts said.

The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early Monday as it was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, and sank quickly.

Fifteen people escaped in a lifeboat and were rescued by a nearby sailboat. One body was recovered Monday - that of the ship's Antigua-born chef, Recaldo Thomas.

Six people remained unaccounted for, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and associates who had successfully defended him in a recent U.S. federal fraud trial.

RELATED: 2 Americans among 6 passengers still missing after superyacht sinks off coast of Sicily

Investigators from the Termini Imerese Public Prosecutor's Office, meanwhile, were acquiring evidence for their criminal investigation, which they opened immediately after the tragedy even though no formal suspects have been publicly identified.

Questions abound about what caused the superyacht, which was built in 2008 by Italian shipyard Perini Navi, to sink so quickly, when the nearby Sir Robert Baden Powell sailboat was largely spared and managed to rescue the 15 survivors.

Was it merely the case of a freak waterspout that knocked the ship to its side and allowed water to pour in through open hatches? What was the position of the keel, which on a large sailboat such as the Bayesian might have been retractable, to allow it to enter shallower ports?

"There's a lot of uncertainty as to whether it had a lifting keel and whether it might have been up," said Jean-Baptiste Souppez, a fellow of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects and the editor of the Journal of Sailing Technology. "But if it had, then that would reduce the amount of stability that the vessel had, and therefore made it easier for it to roll over on its side," he said in an interview.

Yachts such as the Bayesian are also required to have watertight, sub-compartments that are specifically designed to prevent a rapid, catastrophic sinking even when some parts fill with water.

"So for the vessel to sink, especially this fast, you are really looking at taking water on board very quickly, but also in a number of locations along the length of the vessel, which again indicates that it might have been rolled over on its side," Souppez said.

Italian coast guard and fire rescue divers, meanwhile, continued the underwater search in dangerous and time-consuming conditions. Because of the depth of the wreck - which is far deeper than most recreational divers are certified for and at a depth that requires special precautions - divers working in tag teams can only spend about 12 minutes at a time searching.

The limited dive time is designed in part to avoid decompression sickness, also known as the "bends," which can occur when divers stay underwater for long periods and ascend too quickly, allowing nitrogen gas dissolved in the blood to form bubbles.

"The longer you stay, the slower your ascent has to be," said Simon Rogerson, the editor of SCUBA magazine. He said the tight turnaround time suggests the managers of the operation are trying to limit the risks and recovery time after each dive.

"It sounds like they're operating essentially on no decompression or very tight decompression, or they're being extremely conservative," he said.

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Deep seas and tight spaces impede search for 6 missing after yacht sinks off Sicily

PORTICELLO, Sicily (AP) — Police divers resumed searching Tuesday for six people believed trapped in the hull of a superyacht that sank in deep seas off Sicily, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, who was celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with the people who had defended him at trial.

The luxury sailboat, off Porticello near Palermo, was about 50 meters (164 feet) underwater — far deeper than most recreational divers are certified for and a depth that requires special precautions. Recovery crews could only stay for 12-minute shifts, a measure that slowed efforts to reach the cramped inside of the wreck.

Divers tag-teamed the shifts and were using a remote-controlled underwater vehicle, or ROV, to help in the search. They hadn’t been able to access the below-deck cabins because they were blocked by furniture that shifted during the violent storm that struck the vessel early Monday. Rescue crews said they assume the missing six are in those cabins because the storm struck when most would be sleeping, but the teams haven’t verified their presence there through portholes.

The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore when a storm rolled in before 4 a.m. Monday. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, and sank quickly.

Grainy film from closed-circuit cameras from shore, broadcast on the website of the Giornale di Sicilia, showed the majestic, illuminated 75-meter (246-foot) mast of the Bayesian weathering the storm and then disappearing over the course of a minute.

Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her. One body was recovered, identified by officials as the Antiguan-born on-board chef. The rest of the 10-person crew survived, including the captain whom prosecutors reportedly sought to interview.

The survivors were rescued by a nearby sailboat after getting into a lifeboat.

Lynch, who was once hailed as Britain’s king of technology, was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges in a U.S. federal trial related to Hewlett Packard’s $11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp. His wife, Angela Bacares, survived the sinking. Hannah Lynch, the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, is reportedly unaccounted for.

Also unaccounted for are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch’s lawyers, and his wife, Neda; and Jonathan Bloomer, a chairman at Morgan Stanley International and the former head of the Autonomy audit committee who testified in Lynch’s defense, and his wife.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which rescued the survivors, said he was close enough to see the Bayesian as the storm came in.

“A moment later, she was gone,” he said.

“It’s a great, great tragedy,” said Britain’s ambassador to Italy, Edward Llewellyn, who visited Porticello on Tuesday. Britain sent four investigators to the scene, given the disaster involved a British-flagged ship and British citizens were among the missing.

Luca Cari, a spokesman for the rescue teams, said the search was proceeding much more slowly than another big shipwreck in Italy, the 2012 Costa Concordia cruise ship that flipped on its side off Tuscany’s coast, because of the depth of the wreck and the limited space divers have to maneuver.

“That was much simpler. Here everything is more tight,” he said.

The outing was intended at least in part as a celebration of Lynch’s acquittal and a “looking forward to what was coming next,” said Reid Weingarten, a Washington attorney and a member of Lynch’s defense team who was not on the yacht.

“A lot of people went, a lot of people were planning to go and then, of course, this happened,” Weingarten said.

Weingarten worked with Morvillo and said he “was like a brother.”

Aki Hussain, CEO of international insurer Hiscox Group, where Bloomer was chairman, said the company was “deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event.”

“Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation,” he added.

Among the survivors, the Emslie family was released from Palermo’s pediatric hospital on Tuesday. Charlotte Golunski had reported that she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter, Sofia, in the water but then managed to hold her up over the waves until they were both pulled to safety, doctors said.

The father, identified by ANSA news agency as James Emslie, also survived.

“They don’t talk much, primarily because they consider themselves survivors and they don’t understand why they survived given what they went through,” said Dr. Domenico Cipolla, head of the emergency room at Di Cristina pediatric hospital.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Cipolla said the parents had been in touch with other survivors, who are being housed at a nearby hotel and were waiting for other family members to arrive in Sicily.

The Bayesian, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, is registered to Revtom Ltd., according to online maritime database Equasis. Bacares, Lynch’s wife, is listed as Revtom’s sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

According to online charter companies, it had been available for charter for 195,000 euros (about $215,000) a week and was notable for its massive 75-meter-tall (246-foot-tall) aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.

The coast guard said to date there was no trace of fuel leaks from the wreckage.

In an unrelated event, Lynch’s co-defendant in the Autonomy trial who was also cleared, Stephen Chamberlain, was killed Sunday when he was hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire, England, said Chamberlain’s lawyer, Gary Lincenberg.

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Six missing and 15 rescued after British yacht sinks off Sicily in storm

One man is dead and six people are missing after a luxury British yacht sank in a “tornado” and rough seas off the coast of Sicily .

The 50-metre boat, named Bayesian, had 22 people on board when it sank in the early hours of Monday off the coast of the Sicilian capital Palermo , with four Britons among the six missing.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch is among the six people missing after a superyacht sank off the coast of Sicily, The Independent understands.

The 59-year-old is known for founding Invoke Capital and co-founding Autonomy Corporation and has been in the headlines recently over a high-profile fraud case.

For latest updates follow our live blog by clicking here

The man who was found dead was discovered by a diver this morning and is believed to be the vessel’s chef. His nationality has not yet been confirmed, the Italian coast guard said.

Photos show emergency services carrying a body bag from the water to the shore where ambulances are waiting.

Fifteen people including Mr Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, were rescued, according to local media. As well as a one-year-old English girl whose mother lifted her to safety.

Have you been affected by this story? Email [email protected]

Charlotte, 35, told Italian media: “For two seconds I lost my baby in the sea, then I immediately hugged her again amid the fury of the waves.’

“I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning,’ she added. ‘It was all dark. In the water I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.”

The girl was taken to the local children’s hospital with her mother “who was given chest stitches for a slight graze”, the newspaper reported. Domenico Cipolla, the head of the emergency room, said the family is in good condition.

Most of the passengers were British, but the boat was also carrying two Anglo-French citizens, an Irish national, a New Zealander and a Sri Lankan, news agency Adnkronos has reported.

The rescue divers saw “corpses through the portholes” of the superyacht, Salvo Cocina, the head of the Civil Protection of Sicily, told Corriere Della Sera.

The BAIA Santa Nicolicchia restaurant in Porticello wrote on its Facebook page that the yacht sank at around 4am. In a post, the restaurant owner said it is an “unbelievable tragedy” and that they were “lost for words”.

One anonymous witness told Rai News: “That boat was all lit up. At about 4.30 in the morning, it was gone. A beautiful boat where there had been a party. A normal holiday spent happily at sea turned into a tragedy.

“The boat was not far from the port. It took very little to raise the anchor and head for the port. Evidently they were surprised by the storm that suddenly hit and they were unable to avoid sinking.”

The vessel is described by The Superyacht Times as one of the largest superyachts in the world. It was built in 2008 by Italian yacht builder Perini Navi.

Divers from the region’s fire department are continuing searches around the yacht, situated around half a mile off the coast.

The British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement: “We are providing consular support to a number of British nationals and their families following an incident in Sicily, and are in contact with the local authorities.”

The ship is managed by Camper and Nicholsons International, who confirmed to The Independent that the Bayesian sailing yacht “encountered severe weather and subsequently sank.”

A statement continued: “There were a total of 12 guests and 10 crew onboard. The Italian Coast Guard is leading search and rescue operations, and has safely recovered 15 individuals. Efforts to locate the seven missing persons continue. Our priority is assisting with the ongoing search and providing all necessary support to the rescued passengers and crew. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”

Sicily is under a weather warning for wind, with reports of strong gusts hitting the coastline this morning.

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Mike Lynch: Seven key unanswered questions around the sinking of the Bayesian

With the search continuing of the sunken bayesian an investigation has been launched to establish what caused the disaster off the coast of sicily, article bookmarked.

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With the Bayesian lying on her side 50 metres underneath the now gentle waters of the Mediterranean, mystery still surrounds how the 56-metre superyacht, sank in the typhoon off the port of Porticello.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles and cave divers are looking to raise the yacht , which experts will examine in the coming days. For now, the focus is on finding the people missing since the yacht went down in the early hours of Monday 19 August.

It will take weeks for Ambrogio Cartosio, the chief prosecutor of Termini Imerese, and his team to establish whether the sinking of the Bayesian was down to human error, an unpredictable weather event or whether anyone is liable.

They have said they will interview the survivors in the coming days – some of whom were pictured leaving the Domina Zagarella hotel in Santa Flavia, which has become the headquarters for survivors, police and rescuers.

Many questions face the investigators:

Were access hatches left open?

One expert at the scene in Sicily said an early focus of the investigation would be on whether the yacht’s crew had failed to close access hatches before the tornado struck.

Yachting experts have suggested that the hatches being open could have allowed the Bayesian to fill with water quickly and sink.

But Andrea Ratti, a nautical design professor at Polytechnic University of Milan, said a boat the size of the Bayesian could only sink so rapidly by taking in a huge amount of water.

“One can make plausible assumptions that leave room for doubt,” he said, before suggesting that one or more portholes, windows or other openings may have been broken or smashed open by the waterspout.

Was the boat prepared for a storm?

Prosecutors will look at whether appropriate measures were taken in preparation for the storm.

The yacht’s captain, James Catfield, from New Zealand, told Italian media of the suddenness of the waterspout that turned a luxury super yacht into a death trap.

“We just didn’t see it coming,” he said.

Luca Mercalli, the president of the Italian Meteorological Society, said on Tuesday that the crew should have made sure that all the guests were awake and given them lifejackets in light of the forecasted heavy rains.

The coast guard said bad weather had been forecast, but added that it was more virulent than expected. Some locals spoke of a waterspout, or sea whirlwind, of exceptional force.

“It was a strange thing,” fisherman Andrea Carini said. The Bayesian was at anchor, its sails down, when the tempest hit, with another yacht moored nearby.

A nearby yacht, the 42-metre Sir Robert Baden Powell, remained anchored and weathered the storm after its captain turned on the engine to keep control of the vessel and avoid a collision with the Bayesian.

The captain, Karsten Borner, said he did not know whether the crew of the Bayesian had managed to switch on its engines.

“I don’t think they did things wrong, I think they were surprised by the power of the storm,” he said.

“I only know that they went flat with the mast on the water and that they sank in two minutes,” he said, adding that the storm was “very violent, very intense”, bringing in “a lot of water and I think a turning system like a tornado”.

Did the world’s largest aluminium mast have anything to do with the sinking?

The Bayesian was built by Italian shipbuilder Perini in 2008 with a 75m (246ft) mast which it claims is the tallest aluminium mast in the world.

Scott Painter, who took over Lynch’s multi-billion dollar software company called Autonomy, founded in 1996, said Lynch’s yacht may have been more vulnerable due to the mast.

“The mast was the ultimate sailor’s bragging right,” Painter told the outlet. “That mast must’ve been over 240 feet tall, which is either the tallest or second tallest in the world.”

He added: “That could certainly contribute to a capsize as it would destabilize the yacht. And if it were to lean over too far, it could absolutely capsize the yacht.”

Captain Borner said: “If the mast had been broken they wouldn’t have capsized.”

Would a lightning shock wave damage the mast?

Colonel Attilio Di Diodato, director of the Italian Air Force’s Center for Aerospace Meteorology and Climatology, said the agency had registered intense lightning activity and strong gusts of wind in the area.

The Bayesian had one of the tallest aluminium masts in the world, according to its builder, Perini Navi.

“Having a tall aluminium mast would not make it the safest port to be in case of a storm,” said Andrea Ratti, associate professor of nautical design and architecture technology told the Politecnico di Milano.

The type of intensity unleashed by a violent lightning storm “could have created a significant shock wave”, he added.

Was the Bayesian keel retractable and was it down?

The Bayesian had a retractable keel, a fin-like apparatus under the hull that helps stabilise boats and acts as a counterweight to the mast. It is not known whether it was down at the time of the vicious storm.

Both Ratti and Mattioni questioned whether the yacht had been anchored with the keel up, reducing the vessel’s depth under water and making it less stable. Ratti said strong winds might have caused the boat to start oscillating wildly, “like a pendulum”, putting exceptional strain on the mast.

Was the the Bayesian properly anchored?

Tom Sharpe, a retired Royal Navy commander and defence commentator, told CBC News that a mast the size of the Bayesian’s is designed for a massive sail, and without that sail raised and catching the wind, the gusts likely would’ve had a negligible impact on the aluminum pole.

He instead suggested the anchor may have played a pivotal role.

“My kind of working assumption is that she was probably a bit further in at anchor, and it’s very likely, in these sort of conditions, that her anchor dragged,” he said.

He added the 10-strong crew was better off steering toward the anchor to stabilise the yacht or even raising the anchor and steering into the open Meditteranean to ride out the storm.

“They might have got caught in that middle ground where they’re not on a particularly good anchorage but the anchor is now controlling the bow of the ship”, he posited.

Could missing passengers still be alive?

Rescuers have been hampered by the depth of the search, with the boat lying on its side with vital access points choked with debris.

Two bodies were recovered on Wednesday, but not yet identified, with four people still unaccounted for.

The Italian Coastguard had not ruled out the possibility that those missing, including technology tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, may still be alive, with experts speculating air pockets could have formed as the yacht sank.

Among those also missing were Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

Mr Bloomer’s twin brother, Jeremy Bloomer, told the BBC: “It’s a slow process and it will take time. So there might be air pockets, but we don’t know. It’s still wait and see, so fingers crossed.”

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