Autopsies on victims of the sinking of a superyacht

The autopsy of the seven people who died on the superyacht Bayesian began yesterday after it was announced that salvaging the ship would cost at least 17 million euros.

This news comes after an eyewitness reported the disaster firsthand.

Tech billionaire Mike Lynch, 59, and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among those who lost their lives when the yacht sank in unusual weather off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, Italy, on August 19.

Three people are being investigated for causing a disaster and multiple manslaughter. They include the captain of the Bayesian, New Zealander James Cutfield, and two British crew members: chief engineer Tim Roper Eaton and security guard Matthew Griffiths.

Among the theories being examined is whether the crew had taken proper measures to secure the yacht before the predicted storm that prevented the trawlers from heading out to sea.

The first four autopsies of the bodies of the English banker Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judith and the American lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Nada were scheduled for yesterday morning.

Tests on the other three victims, Mr Lynch, his daughter and the ship’s cook Recaldo Thomas, are scheduled to take place this week.

The autopsies, which are considered non-repeatable examinations, will be attended by the experts of the injured and the three men examined.

Giovanni Costantino of the Italian Sea Group, the owner of Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian, has previously claimed that the yacht is “unsinkable” and that human error led to its sinking, as hatches and portholes may have been left open.

Another focus is on the keel of the Bayesian ship, which should be extended to its maximum length to provide better stability in rough weather.

Salvaging the vessel will be a joint operation between insurers and the yacht’s owner, Revtom – an Isle of Man-based company whose sole director is Lynch’s wife Angela, who survived the vessel’s sinking.

A salvage company has yet to be hired for the operation, which experts say could take at least six weeks. Aldo Mordiglia, lawyer for 51-year-old Cutfield, said he expected the complicated procedure to “perhaps begin in October” and that it was “crucial for the investigation that the yacht be salvaged.”

According to maritime law, the yacht owner is responsible for salvaging the Bayesian vessel, but the judicial authorities also play an important role.

A 200-meter-wide exclusion zone has now been set up around the Bayesian and the area is constantly patrolled by coast guard ships and police boats. The 18,000 liters of fuel on board are also a cause for concern.

An environmental vessel is circling the area, ready to drop protective booms to control any possible spills. Meanwhile, eyewitness Rosalia Orlando, 73, who owns a shipyard overlooking the bay where the Bayesian went down, claimed she saw the yacht “with its sails flapping” as the storm hit.

Ms Orlando has been questioned by prosecutors in Sicily and, according to investigative sources, has handed over new footage of the yacht’s final moments of sinking.

She said: “I saw with my own eyes what happened. The boat was moving and rocking as if it was rocking, perhaps it was being pulled by the anchor which was digging into the bottom. I also saw some sails flapping, then the mast went down and the yacht went down on the other side.”

Ms Orlando, who said she was at the dockyard at 4am when the storm hit to check on her property, added: “Nobody had ever dropped anchor there, in too exposed a spot. The water was coming in torrents. I only went to the dock to see the sailing ship, because it had remained there.”

Reporting by Nick Pisa