PALERMO: One man died and six people were missing after a luxury yacht was hit by an unexpectedly violent storm and sank off the Sicilian capital Palermo on Monday, the Italian coast guard said.
The 56-metre-long (184-foot) sailing vessel was identified as the British-registered Bayesian and sank with 22 people on board shortly before dawn, the coastguard said in a statement.
The missing people were British, American and Canadian nationals, the coastguard said. Among the 15 people rescued was a one-year-old child.
“The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude,” said a coast guard official in Palermo. Reuters.
Storms and heavy rains have hit Italy in recent days, triggering floods and landslides that have caused significant damage in the north of the country, after weeks of scorching heat.
Eight of those rescued were taken to local hospitals. All are in stable condition, local media reported.
The captain of a nearby ship said Reuters that when the storm came he started the engine to maintain control of the ship and avoid a collision with the Bayesian.
“We managed to keep the ship in position and when the storm was over we realised that the ship behind us had disappeared,” Karsten Borner told reporters.
He said his crew then found some of the survivors in a life raft, including three who were seriously injured, and brought them aboard before the coastguard picked them up.
Borner said “a small baby and the owner's wife” were among the survivors, while the owner of the sunken boat and another child were among the missing.
The coast guard said the ship was found at a depth of 49 metres (160 feet) and divers were inspecting the wreck.
Prosecutors in the nearby town of Termini Imerese have opened an investigation to find out what went wrong.
A spokesman for the UK Foreign Office said British officials were in contact with local authorities about the incident and were ready to provide consular support to affected Britons.
