Tech Tycoon's Yacht Tragedy: 16 Minutes to Disaster, Crew Blamed

The maker of Mike Lynch's ill-fated superyacht has claimed the vessel was "absolutely stable" and should never have sunk, blaming the crew for a "monumental error." The 183-foot vessel, named the Bayesian, capsized in stormy conditions near Palermo, Italy, in the early hours of Monday morning.

Fifteen individuals, including Lynch's wife, were rescued, while seven others, including the British tech tycoon himself, have been confirmed dead.

Divers located the body of the final missing individual from the superyacht on Friday, according to reports from the Italian Coast Guard. The Washington Post and CNN both reported that the last body found was believed to be Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Italian Sea Group, which owns Perini Navi, the firm that built the Bayesian in 2008, asserted that the ship was "designed for absolute stability," boasting the world's second-tallest mast.

"The ordeal lasted 16 minutes. It didn't go down in a single minute, as some experts have suggested. It sank over 16 minutes," Costantino told the Financial Times. "This is clear from the charts, from the [Automatic Identification System] tracking data."

While Business Insider could not independently verify Costantino's statement, he did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Costantino further criticised the yacht's skipper, stating that he "should have secured everything" and "gathered all passengers at the designated safe point. This is standard protocol. No one should have been in their cabin."

In a Thursday interview with Reuters, Costantino squarely placed the blame for the fatal incident on the yacht's crew, stating that they made an "unbelievable mistake" by failing to adequately prepare for the powerful storm.

"This is a mistake that cries out for retribution," Costantino told Reuters, highlighting that the storm had been predicted in shipping forecasts.

Maritime legal experts have previously advised the operator of the sunken yacht to seek legal counsel in anticipation of potential claims from the families of the deceased or survivors.

"The boat suffered a series of indescribable, unreasonable errors; the impossible happened on that boat... but it went down because it took on water. Where that water came from, investigators will determine," Costantino told Reuters.

An investigation into the precise cause of the sinking is currently underway.

Authorities have confirmed that a powerful storm was present in the area, although search-and-rescue experts have suggested that multiple factors may have contributed to the disaster.

One theory posits that soaring temperatures in the region caused passengers and crew to leave windows and doors open, allowing water to quickly flood the ship during the storm.

"The boat sank because it took on water," Costantino told the FT. He added that a large opening above the waterline on the stern could have been left open, leading to flooding.

Of the 15 individuals who escaped, nine were crew members. One of them, a chef named Recaldo Thomas, was confirmed dead on Monday.

Stephen Askins, a lawyer specializing in maritime cases, told MailOnline that the crew was likely awake before the ship sank, while passengers may have been sleeping below deck.

"Water entered through [hatchways] that were left open," Costantino told the FT. "There's no other plausible explanation. If maneuvered correctly, the boat would have easily handled the weather—easily."

Matthew Schanck, a maritime search-and-rescue consultant, previously told BI that the disaster was "shocking" as Lynch's vessel was a "modern, state-of-the-art superyacht" that would have been commercially certified with the appropriate safety regulations in place.

Witnesses told BBC News they observed a waterspout—an uncommon weather phenomenon characterized by tornadolike wind and water—before the ship went down.

"This has been the accepted theory, that the vessel was hit by a waterspout and the crew didn't see it coming because it was nighttime and dark," Schanck stated. However, he questioned how witnesses could have noticed a waterspout if the crew hadn't.