Mike Lynch’s Sunken Superyacht Raised Off Sicily for Full Investigation

Mike Lynch’s sunken superyacht, the 56-meter Bayesian, has been successfully lifted from the seabed near Porticello, Sicily, nearly 10 months after it capsized during a violent storm on August 19, 2024, killing Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, and five others.

The salvage operation used one of Europe’s most powerful floating sea cranes to raise the yacht from 50 meters underwater. The vessel was carefully secured with eight steel lifting straps and a specially engineered steel wire system. Its 72-meter mast had been remotely cut off and left on the seabed to facilitate the lifting.

After being raised, the Bayesian was transported to the nearby Sicilian town of Termini Imerese, where Italian prosecutors leading the criminal investigation into the sinking are based. The yacht will be placed in a specially manufactured steel cradle with pollution controls to allow a full forensic examination.

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British and Italian investigators will conduct a detailed probe to determine the causes of the disaster. An interim UK report indicated the yacht was vulnerable to extreme winds exceeding 70 knots (81 mph), which likely caused it to capsize rapidly within 15 seconds. The investigation will focus on safety elements such as escape routes and the sequence of events on board.

The sinking occurred as Lynch was celebrating his acquittal on US fraud charges with friends on the yacht. Fifteen people, including Lynch’s wife Angela Bacares, survived the incident. The inquiry also involves inquest proceedings in the UK into the deaths of Lynch, his daughter, and other British nationals on board.

The recovery operation was delayed after a diver died in May during underwater work, prompting increased use of remote-controlled equipment. About 70 specialists from across Europe were mobilized for the complex salvage