Summary
The body of a man recovered near the Bayesian yacht is believed to be that of Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef who was working on the boat
Six people are still missing after British luxury yacht sank off Sicily on Monday
They include Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy, British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, and jewellery designer Neda Morvillo
Divers are struggling to reach the cabins of the yacht, with a "world of objects" blocking access to the rooms
Of the 22 people on board, 15 survived, six are missing, and one body, believed to be Recaldo Thomas, has been found
Live Reporting
Edited by Sean Seddon, with Mark Lowen reporting from Sicily
Rescue workers continue the search for six missing peoplepublished at 20:28 British Summer Time 20 August
20:28 BST 20 August
Image source, IGOR PETYX/EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstocSearch crews say their efforts to recover the six people still not accounted for after a yacht sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday will "continue without stopping".
As the second day of that operation comes to close, here's what we have learned:
- Friends of Recaldo Thomas, the chef believed to have died in the sinking, have begun to pay tribute to his "smile that lit up a room"
- Three more survivors have been named as Leo Eppel and South African nationals Leah Randall and Katja Chicken - all members of crew that were on board the ship when it sank
- Six people still remain unaccounted for: Mike Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy, and Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda
- Divers have been able to reach the lounge of the yacht but their path to the cabins has been blocked by "a world of objects"
- The Italian coastguard says that specialist divers are "evaluating the feasibility of safely entering the wreck", but warn the search is being complicated by its "depth and the position of the hull" around 50m (164ft) below the surface
- Jonathan Bloomer's twin brother has told the BBC his family are "coping the best we can" as they wait for updates from the rescue team's ongoing efforts
We're going to pause our coverage now but you can read more about the second day of the Bayesian search operation here.
This page was edited by Emily Atkinson, Owen Amos and Sean Seddon and was written by Sophie Abdulla, Adam Durbin, Gabriela Pomeroy, Matt Spivey, Barbara Tasch, Jacqueline Howard, Rachel Flynn and Johanna Chisholm.
Who are the six people still missing?published at 20:19 British Summer Time 20 August
20:19 BST 20 August
Image source, PA MediaSix people remain unaccounted for after a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, including a father and daughter, as well as two married couples.
UK businessman Mike Lynch, who helped establish Cambridge Neurodynamics and co-founded the firm Autonomy, is still missing alongside his daughter Hannah Lynch, an 18-year-old student.
Jonathan Bloomer, the chairman of Morgan Stanley Bank International, and his wife Judy Bloomer were also on the yacht when it sank and have not yet been found.
Chris Morvillo, a partner at the law firm Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda Morvillo, a jewellery designer, have also been confirmed as missing.
Earlier we reported that the body of a man recovered near the sunken Sicilian yacht is believed to be that of Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef who was working on the boat.
His friends have described him as having "a smile that lit up the room".
Couple missing from yacht are 'incredibly generous people', says reverendpublished at 20:07 British Summer Time 20 August
20:07 BST 20 August
Jonathan and Judy Bloomer - who are still missing following the sinking of the Bayesian yacht - are “incredibly generous people”,the reverend of their local church says.
Speaking to BBC South East, Rev Tim Edwards, fromKnockholt in Kent, says “at themoment there’s an awful lot that we don’t know”.
He describes the couple as being “very much” part of thevillage community and active with local charities.
What are waterspouts?published at 19:52 British Summer Time 20 August
19:52 BST 20 August
According to vessel tracking app Vesselfinder, the Bayesian left the Sicilian port of Milazzo on 14 August and was last tracked east of Palermo on Sunday evening, with a navigation status of "at anchor".
Witnesses later described seeing a waterspout form during a storm that hit in the area overnight, and - as mentioned in our last post - it is believed to have struck the yacht before it sank.
Most are familiar with what tornadoes look like - they are rotating columns of destructive winds, protruding from the base of clouds down to the ground. According to BBC Weather, waterspouts are just that too, but they form over water rather than land.
Instead of dust and debris swirling around the core of strong winds, it is water mist whipped up from the surface.
Like tornadoes, most are only short-lived, narrow columns and are not easily picked out on weather radars, so many will go unreported.
How could the yacht have sunk?published at 19:39 British Summer Time 20 August
19:39 BST 20 August
It is believed the Bayesian was struck by a tornado over the water - otherwise known as a waterspout - causing the luxury yacht to capsize and sink to the seabed.
There are separate reports the boat's mast snapped during the freak storm, while other factors in the boat's tipping over could include water entering through hatches and doors which might have been left open because of warm weather off the Italian coast.
'Easy to talk to with a sense of humour' - friend describes Mike Lynchpublished at 19:27 British Summer Time 20 August
19:27 BST 20 August
Another one of Mike Lynch's friends has been telling the BBC a bit more about their neighbour's personality.
"He is so approachable and a very easy person to talk to," Richard Smith, who lives in the Suffolk village of Pettistree, says. "A nice sense of humour."
"You might think with all that money that he would be a difficult person to talk to, but in fact he was a very easy person to talk to."
Mike Lynch's neighbour 'horrified' to learn he's missingpublished at 19:08 British Summer Time 20 August
19:08 BST 20 August
Image source, ReutersOne of Mike Lynch's neighbours says she was "horrified" to find out he was missing and describes it as the "worst news".
"I just couldn't believe it, I thought this can't be right," Ruth Leigh, of Pettistree in Suffolk, says.
Leigh says they have lived near each other for around 15 years and describes Lynch as a "fantastic neighbour" and a "very charitable man".
"Even though he was incredibly wealthy and a very important person he never ever gave that impression.
"Whenever he met you he always remembers your name, he would chat to you - incredibly friendly and down to earth, which we thought was a great quality," she adds.
Did the yacht’s keel play a role in it sinking?published at 18:46 British Summer Time 20 August
18:46 BST 20 August
By Tom Edgington
There has been speculation about the type of keel on the Bayesian and whether it may have been a factor in it sinking.
The website for Perini Navi – the yacht’s builder – is currently not available. However, by searching internet archives BBC Verify has obtained the boat’s 2018 brochure.
In the “features and performance” section, the document gives dimensions for the keel in an "up" position - 4.05m (13ft) - and in a "down" position - 9.83m (32ft) - suggesting it is retractable.
The BBC has contacted Perini Navi but has not had a reply.
Akeel is a support structure underneath the boat which projects downwards andhelps keep it balanced on the surface.
Certain boats might require a retractable keel in order to enter shallow water without getting stuck.
We don’t know if the Bayesian’s keel was up or down at the time it was struck by a storm.
However, Andrew Fairbrass who runs a large yacht engineering business says “when you're sailing, you have to keep the keel down and it does make a big difference to stability”.
Image source, EPAName of surviving crew member confirmed by coastguardpublished at 18:24 British Summer Time 20 August
18:24 BST 20 AugustBreaking
The Italian coastguard has confirmed the name of another crew member who survived the sinking of the Bayesian.
Leo Eppel was on board the yacht when it capsized, spokesman Vincenzo Zagarola says.
Two other surviving crew members were named by authorities a short while ago.
The BBC understands that Recaldo Thomas, who worked as a chef on the boat, was killed and his body has been recovered.
You can read tributes to the Canadian-Antiguan national here.
British investigators arrive but hopes for miracle vanishpublished at 18:08 British Summer Time 20 August
18:08 BST 20 August
Mark Lowen
Reporting from PorticelloIn cloudy skies and on choppy waters, the search has gone on all day, a helicopter scouring the site where the Bayesian capsized as divers plunged deep below.
They’re trying to access the wreckage of the yacht that was hit by a tornado-like waterspout, and is now 50m (164ft) underwater.
Given the depth, each dive can only be 10 minutes, and with the boat still largely intact it’s hard to get access inside.
British investigators are now here to assess what happened during the extreme weather that hit the Bayesian.
Severe heat and violent storms had prompted a weather alert before the yacht went down.
Tonight the search goes on - but any hope of a Mediterranean miracle survival has all but vanished.
'It's still wait and see,' says twin brother of missing manpublished at 17:50 British Summer Time 20 August
17:50 BST 20 August
Navtej Johal
Midlands correspondentImage source, LinkedInJonathan Bloomer's twin brother has told the BBC his family are "coping the best we can" as rescue workers continue to search for him off the coast of Sicily.
The banker is one of six people still missing since the Bayesian yacht capsized.
See AlsoM&T Bank Review 2024Jeremy Bloomer tells the BBC he has not received any new updates on the search efforts to find Jonathan, beyond that divers are struggling to access the wreck of the boat.
He says: "It's a slow processand it will take time. So there might be air pockets, but we don't know."
Jeremy continues: "He was my older [brother] by half an hour. So it means a lot when you lose a twin brother. It's still wait and see, so fingers crossed."
Asked how he was coping, he says the situation is "terrible" and something that's "beyond your wildest imagination".
Quote Message
I'm just numb, just numb. That's it, you don't know what to think and you can't believe it's happened."
Two members of crew named as survivors of yacht sinkingpublished at 17:39 British Summer Time 20 August
17:39 BST 20 August
We've just heard from the Italian coastguard, which has named two more survivors of the yacht sinking.
South African nationals Leah Randall and Katja Chicken, who worked as crew members on the Bayesian, managed to get to safety after the vessel sank in the early hours of Monday morning.
In total, 15 of the 22 people on board have been rescued. Among them are:
- Mike Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares
- Charlotte Golunski, her husband James and their one-year-old daughter
- Ayla Ronald, who worked as a lawyer for Mike Lynch, and her partner
How Mike Lynch's courtroom joy led to yacht tragedypublished at 17:24 British Summer Time 20 August
17:24 BST 20 August
Image source, PA MediaTwelve people were vacationing on Mike Lynch's yacht, alongside 10 crew members, when it sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily. The gathering was reportedly a celebration.
Earlier this year, Lynch was cleared of fraud and conspiracy charges arising from the sale of his firm Autonomy to US tech giant Hewlett Packard. The decade-long legal battle had led to Lynch's extradition from the UK.
Upon being cleared of the charges in June, the British entrepreneur said he was "elated" and thanked his legal team for their "tireless work". Some of them were on the yacht alongside him when it sank.
Chris Morvillo, a lawyer for Clifford Chance - the law firm that represented Lynch - is among the six people still missing. So is his wife Neda Morvillo, an American jewellery designer.
Ayla Ronald, a senior associate at the same law firm, also worked on Lynch's case. Both she and her partner were invited to the yacht and were rescued when it sank.
Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer - who appeared as a defence witness for Lynch during his trial - and his wife Judy Bloomer were on the boat when disaster struck. Both are unaccounted for.
Charlotte Golunski, the board director of Luminance - an artificial intelligence platform founded by Lynch - was on board, along with her husband and one-year-old daughter. All three survived.
Lynch's wife Angela Bacares and daughter Hannah were also there. Bacares has been rescued but 18-year-old Hannah is still missing.
In pictures: Search operation at wreck site continuespublished at 17:03 British Summer Time 20 August
17:03 BST 20 August
A search and rescue operation, which includes boats scouring the surface of the sea and divers examining the wreck of the Bayesian yacht on the seabed, is still ongoing.
As we've been reporting, the specialist diving team have been struggling to access the cabins on the wreck - which is around 50m below the surface - because of debris blocking access.
Image source, ReutersImage source, ReutersImage source, Reuters'A smile that lit up the room': Tributes to chef killed in yacht sinkingpublished at 16:52 British Summer Time 20 August
16:52 BST 20 August
Insaf Abbas
BBC NewsImage source, FacebookThe body of a man recovered near the Bayesian yacht is believed to be that of Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef who was working on the boat.
His friends have been paying tribute to him. Gareth Williams, who lives in Antigua, knew Thomas for 30 years.
"I can talk for everyone that knew him when I say he was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit," he told me.
The two grew up together in Antigua, where Recaldo spent his time during off-season.
"He would come over to mine over the weekend and he would sing. He had the deepest, most sultry voice in the world, and a smile that lit up the room.
"He told me just the other day that he needed to work two more seasons to fix up his late parents' house. He loved yachting, but he was tired."
Eli Fuller met Recaldo some 25 years ago while out socialising in Antigua.
"He knew everybody and was friends with everybody. He'd always ask how you were doing, how your family was - he was always positive.
"Personality was very important in his job. The world's richest people want to hang out with someone social. He was sought after."
He added that Thomas became an inspiration to young black children who wanted to get into yachting.
"The kids would see all these white people working on yachts. For them to see an Antiguan man travelling all over the world - it was important for our community."
Search efforts complicated by wreck's position underwater, coastguard sayspublished at 16:42 British Summer Time 20 August
16:42 BST 20 AugustBreaking
The search for the missing six passengers "continues without stopping" but divers have not found anything, the Italian coastguard says.
The coastguard says that specialist divers are "evaluating the feasibility of safely entering the wreck", but that the search is being "complicated by the depth and the position of the hull lying on the seabed" - at 50m below the surface.
It adds there is no trace of "hydrocarbon pollution" - meaning oil or other similar fuel is not leaking from the wreck.
Why is the search and recovery operation for the Bayesian so complex?published at 16:28 British Summer Time 20 August
16:28 BST 20 August
Image source, PA MediaWe're well into the second day of search and rescue operations for the six people still missing after the sinking of a luxury yacht off the coast of Sicily.
Here are some of the factors which make this a highly complex process:
- The wreckage is currently 50m (165ft) below the surface of the water
- Furniture and a "world of objects" are blocking access to the cabins of the yacht, hampering the divers' access
- Divers can only spend 12 minutes below the surface of the water, meaning by the time they reach the Bayesian, they only have 10 minutes to search the wreck
- The bridge of the yacht - the room where the captain controls the vessel - is full of electrical cables
- Divers are unable to see inside the yacht, though a possible entry point could be through a 3cm (1.2in)-thick glass window
- Specialist divers who are trained to work in small spaces have had to be flown in from Rome and Sardinia
Ex-MP John Gummer on his 'wonderfully kind' friend Lynchpublished at 16:10 British Summer Time 20 August
16:10 BST 20 August
Helen Burchell
Live reporterImage source, Getty ImagesLord Deben, former Conservative MP John Gummer, describes his missing friend Mike Lynch as "a wonderfully kind and companionable" man.
"He is the kind of person who carries thisenormously clever mind, but carries it so lightly, and is always interested inwhat others have to say and might contribute," he says in a statement.
"It is a very serious moment... for if we have lost him, we’ve lost a very wonderful man."
He adds: "It is one of the cruellest blows that could possibly be made if it turns out that he hasn’t survived because he had so much to give, and he was giving it.
"This is a man of outstanding ability, but also the sort of person whom we were all very, very fortunate to know."
Water conditions could have led to waterspout, says oceanographerpublished at 15:54 British Summer Time 20 August
15:54 BST 20 August
Dr Simon Boxall, an oceanographer from the University of Southampton, says "there's a lot still to be discovered" about what led to the sinking of the Bayesian.
Asked about reports the boat may have been hit by a waterspout, he tells the BBC they are "not normally dangerous" but that would depend on the intensity of the weather system.
Boxall says: "What's interesting is that we saw very light winds up until the time at which the yacht was hit.
"And then suddenly, the wind went from about three or four miles an hour to 30 or 40 miles an hour, and then dropped again. And that was on land.
"So it's a sort of precursor to there being a major sort of squall or even a waterspout that would have hit the ship."
The ocean to the north of Sicily is more than three degrees warmer than it should be at this time of year, he adds, creating a "perfect storm" for waterspouts to occur.
'Yacht sank in two minutes,' captain of nearby ship sayspublished at 15:41 British Summer Time 20 August
15:41 BST 20 August
Image source, ReutersThe captain of the Dutch-flagged ship that rescued Bayesian passengers from the water before emergency services arrived has spoken again to Reuters.
Captain Karsten Borner has previously explained how he worked to keep his ship upright during the storm, before noticing the luxury yacht that had been behind his vessel had disappeared.
"I don't absolutely know what they did. I only know that they went flat with a mast on the water and that they sank in two minutes," Borner says.
He says the sea temperature, which meteorologists have told us was at an extreme high of 30C, is "way too hot for the Mediterranean, and this causes, for sure, heavy storms".
