British tech entrepreneur, Americans among missing after yacht sinks off Italian coast, killing at least 1

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At least 1 dead, 6 missing after yacht sinks off Italian coast

Another 15 people rescued, vessel found to be 164 feet deep, Vigili del Fuoco said. (Courtesy: Vigili del Fuoco)

British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, known as Britain's Bill Gates, and two Americans are among six missing after a luxury superyacht sank off the coast of Italy, killing at least one man.

The 184-foot British-flagged Bayesian carrying foreign tourists capsized and sank off Sicily in bad weather early Monday. One body was found, six people remain missing and 15 people were rescued, including a 1-year-old girl, authorities said.

The Italian coast guard said the sailboat overturned sometime after 5 a.m. off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, where it was anchored. Ten crew members and 12 passengers, including British, American and Canadian nationalities were onboard. 

"The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude," a coast guard official in Palermo told Reuters.

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In this handout screen grab taken from a video provided by Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili dei del Fuoco, an Italian Coast Guard ship is seen at the site of a sunken vessel on Aug. 19, 2024, in Palermo, Italy.  (Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili dei del Fuoco via Getty Images)

Storms and heavy rainfall have swept down Italy in recent days - with floods and landslides causing major damage in the north of the country - after weeks of scorching heat.

"We managed to keep the ship in position and after the storm was over, we noticed that the ship behind us was gone," Karsten Borner, the captain of a nearby boat, said. He turned the engine on to keep control of the vessel and avoid a collision with the Bayesian, he told Reuters. 

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Emergency services carry a body bag after a sailboat sank in the early hours of Monday, off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, on Aug. 19, 2024. (REUTERS/Igor Petyx)

Bayesian, built in 2008 by Italian firm Perini Navi, was known for its single 246-foot mast, one of the world’s tallest made of aluminum and which was lit up at night, just hours before it sank. Online charter sites list it for rent for up to $215,000 a week, according to The Associated Press.

The vessel was found 164-feet deep, Vigili del Fuoco said. Deep-water police divers are trying to access the hull, Luca Cari, a spokesperson for the Italian fire rescue service, said. 

The UK vessel Bayesian, left, and the Duch sailboat Sir Robert Baden Powell at anchor off the Sicilian village of Porticello near Palermo, in southern Italy, on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024.  (Fabio La Bianca/Baia Santa Nicolicchia via AP)

Eight of the 15 people rescued and taken to shore at Porticello were hospitalized.

One of the survivors, identified only as Charlotte, said she had momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter Sofia in the water, but then managed to hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, Italian news agency ANSA reported, quoting the mother.

Emergency and rescue services work near the scene where a sailboat sank in the early hours of Monday off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, on Aug. 19, 2024. (REUTERS/Igor Petyx)

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Fisherman Francesco Cefalu’ said he had seen a flare from shore at around 4:30 a.m. and immediately set out to the site but by the time he got there, the Bayesian had already sunk, with only cushions, wood and other items from the superyacht floating in the water.

"I think they are inside, all the missing people," he said. 

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.