Yacht maker says 'indescribable' crew errors led to fatal Sicily shipwreck
Giovanni Costantino is the CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which built the British-flagged Bayesian in 2008
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The CEO of a manufacturing company responsible for building the yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily this week blamed a series of "indescribable, unreasonable errors" by the crew for the vessel’s demise.
Reuters reported that Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which includes Perini Navi, the Italian high-end yacht maker that built the British-flagged Bayesian in 2008, directed blame at the crew of the 183-foot superyacht that sank after capsizing Monday.
"The boat suffered a series of indescribable, unreasonable errors. The impossible happened on that boat ... but it went down because it took on water. From where, the investigators will tell," Costantino said in an interview.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Bayesian had 22 people on board — 12 passengers and 10 crew — when it capsized and sank within minutes of being hit by a predawn storm while anchored off the coast of northern Sicily.
MOMENT LUXURY YACHT SINKS OFF COAST OF ITALY CAUGHT ON CAMERA, WITH 6 PRESUMED DEAD
Italian firefighter divers bring ashore in a plastic bag the body of one of the victims of a shipwreck in Porticello, Sicily, southern Italy, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)
The yacht has been refitted twice since it was built, the most recent time in 2020, but not by Perini.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Costantino ruled out design or construction flaws as reasons the ship sank, saying it was unlikely after 16 years of trouble-free navigation, including in more severe weather than Bayesian encountered this week.
Instead, he blamed the yacht’s crew for the "incredible mistake" of not being prepared for the storm, which was included in shipping forecasts.
BODY OF MIKE LYNCH RECOVERED FROM SUPERYACHT WRECK AS ITALIAN DIVERS SEARCH FOR FINAL MISSING PERSON
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Italian firefighter scuba divers bring ashore the body of one of the victims from the British-flagged vessel Bayesia Wednesday. (Salvatore Cavalli)
"This is the mistake that cries out for vengeance," Costantino said.
The passengers should have been called out of their cabins and assembled at a safety point as the ship was preparing for the storm by pulling up the anchor, the CEO said. Additionally, doors and hatches should have been closed, and the keel should have been lowered to increase stability, among other safety measures, Costantino declared.
Had correct procedures been followed, all passengers would have gone back to sleep after one hour, "and the next morning they would have happily resumed their wonderful cruise," Costantino added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WHO IS MIKE LYNCH, THE BRITISH TECH ENTREPRENEUR MISSING AFTER YACHT SANK?
Billionaire British tech titan Mike Lynch's body was among those recovered from the luxury superyacht. (Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images/File)
Billionaire tech mogul Mike Lynch's body was among the five recovered from the luxury superyacht after it sank.
Lynch, a British tech titan, was apparently aboard the Bayesian to celebrate his recent acquittal in a U.S. fraud case with associates who helped him through the trial.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Included among the six missing people were Lynch; his 18-year-old daughter Hannah; Christopher Morvillo, an American lawyer with Clifford Chance who defended Lynch in the fraud case; and Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer, who testified in Lynch’s defense.
Recaldo Thomas, a chef who died in the yacht disaster off Sicily's coast, poses for a selfie in this picture obtained from social media. (Recaldo Thomas/via Reuters)
Morvillo’s wife, Neda, and Bloomer’s wife, Judy, were also among the missing.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Divers have been searching for the missing in the hull of the Bayesian, which now rests on the seabed 164 feet underwater. Though the sixth person, whom officials said is a woman, remains missing, the operation is considered a recovery since there have been no signs of life over three days of searching.
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A nearby sailboat rescued 15 people, including a 1-year-old girl. The body of onboard chef Recaldo Thomas, an Antiguan citizen, was recovered Monday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Investigators are seeking to learn why the superyacht sank so quickly.
Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.