bayesian sailboat

Satellite video shows final minutes of the Bayesian superyacht as it is dramatically blown by storm and disappears from radar

T he frightening final minutes of the doomed Bayesian yacht have been revealed in a new video, showing it being hit by a sudden storm then disappearing entirely from radar as it sank.

Satellite imaging video obtained by The Post from the early morning of August 19 shows the moments the $40m superyacht – which had 22 people aboard, seven of whom drowned in the tragedy – is dramatically blown off course by a freak storm off the coast of Porticello in Sicily, Italy.

The yacht is seen blown in a roughly South Eastern direction between 1:56am to 2:09am UTC, the equivalent of 3:56am to 4:09am in the local time. One other vessel, the Sir Robert Baden Powell, is in the same area and also gets flung across the sea.

The 185-foot Bayesian is spun anti-clockwise by more than 180 degrees from its starting point and moves around 300 meters (985 feet). The boat then stays in place as it sank, with its radar signal ominously disappearing at 3:09am UTC, or 5:09am local time, the video from Marinetraffic.com shows.

Describing the scene to Italian authorities, sailor Matthew Griffiths, who was on watch at the time of the sinking, said he “woke the captain up when the wind was blowing at 20 knots [and] he ordered to wake everyone else up,” according to Italian news service ANSA .

Griffiths also told investigators the ship “tilted and we fell into the water … We were then able to climb back on and we tried to rescue those we could.

“[The] boat was tilted and we were walking on the walls. We rescued those we could,” ANSA reported Griffiths saying.

A life raft was launched which carried 15 survivors from the yacht, nine members of staff and six guests, including a one-year-old baby. It was met by a smaller boat sent from the Sir Robert Baden Powell to aid in the rescue.

The Bayesian’s owner, British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, was trapped in a cabin as the ship rapidly sank and died. His daughter, Hannah, 18, also died in the accident, as well as five others: New York City lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda; Morgan Stanley Bank International chair Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy; and the ship’s chef, Recaldo Thomas.

The exact cause of the sinking is not yet known and still under investigation by authorities. It has been suggested that a tornado-like waterspout, known as a “black swan” weather event, could have hit the vessel during the storm, giving the staff little time to react.

Others have suggested windows, portholes or other openings may have been broken or smashed open by the powerful waterspout, causing the yacht to sink so rapidly.

Officials are also looking into whether a downburst could have hit the yacht. Downbursts are a different type of weather event caused by powerful winds being projected downwards from a storm, which can be highly destructive, according to the BBC .

Three of the ship’s crew — Griffiths, ship engineer Tim Parker Eaton and captain James Cutfield — are currently under investigation over the wreck as authorities try and piece together what caused the ship to sink so rapidly.

However, Italian authorities have made clear being part of the investigation does not imply wrongdoing and is a required procedural step.

Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, survived the ordeal but has yet to speak publicly about the ordeal.

The Captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell has also given his version of events at the time of the sinking, saying he noticed the weather deteriorating at 3am.

“When things calmed down and the storm abated somewhat … we were looking around and couldn’t see the Bayesian anymore,” captain Karsten Borner told People magazine.  

“Two passengers and two crew members saw what looked like a whale in the water and realized afterwards it was the capsized boat.

“A moment later, I saw a triangle in the sea in a split second that the sky was lit up by lightning, and that must have been the bow of the ship while sinking over the stern.”

Borner and his first mate then took the smaller boat in an attempt to help survivors.

“We first found things floating in the water like cushions and chairs and stuff. And then we saw a flickering light. This was a life raft with a light on the top. And they also waved at us with a torch.”

“So we went there, and then we found the crew and part of the passengers,” he added.

A salvage mission to raise the Bayesian from the sea bed and bring it to port in Sicily so it can be examined to find out more about its sinking is currently underway.