As the Mallorcan and global nautical community struggles to comes to terms with this week’s tragic accident in Sicily a leading member of the local nautical industry has set up a crowdfunding site to raise funds for the crew.
The skipper behind the site states: “I would like the yachting community and anyone else to donate to support the crew and the fellow crew member who sadly lost his life in the line of duty. The funds will be share equally amongst all of the crew to support them in the mental, physical and financial challenges that lie ahead. I hope the outcome of our help allows the crew to move forward with their lives and can rely on the support of our yachting community.”And the response has already been extremely positive.
The nautical industry in Mallorca, the Balearics and across the world has been left stunned and in deep shock after the British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-ft) superyacht capsized during a fierce, pre-dawn tempest on Monday carrying 22 passengers and crew and was anchored off the port of Porticello, near Palermo.
Fifteen people survived, the body of one person who died was recovered promptly, and this morning (Thursday) one person remains unaccounted for after five bodies were recovered, including British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International. Another of the 15 survivors has been confirmed as Dutch national crewman Tjis Koopmans.
Not only had Bayesian been based in Mallorca, in particular the Club de Mar in Palma and Port Adriano, for many summer seasons, according to nautical industry sources consulted by the Bulletin, she also underwent regular refits in Palma.
The senior members of the crew are very well known on the island, in particular the only confirmed fatality to date, Canadian-Antiguan chef Recaldo Thomas.
On Monday night at 8pm, yachts in Palma and across the Balearics sounded their horns in tribute to all those involved in the accident and since news of Thomas’s body having been recovered, the industry is in deep shock.
“He (Recaldo Thomas) was larger than life, always had a smile and was extremely well known in Mallorca, he was the life and soul of the yachting industry and very professional, just like the rest of the crew. They were all some of the very best in the industry and I used to not only work with them but drink with them too,” one superyacht skipper told the Bulletin, not wishing to be named.
“We’re all in deep shock, especially those working on the sailing yachts, it’s tragic and we all feel for those on board and if a crowd funding page is set up for Recaldo I am sure the yachting community will be very supportive and I am sure the yacht’s management team will be. It’s going to be very tough for the survivors to get through this and then move forward. It’s just shocking,” he said.
The brother of the skipper, James Cutfield, has told the New Zealand Herald that his brother was a “very good sailor” and was “very well respected” in the Mediterranean. He said he is currently in hospital but was not suffering from injuries “too dramatic”. He said that they had been called by Cutfield’s wife Cristina before the news broke so they would know he was not among the dead. She had flown from their home in Palma to be with him in Italy and has been updating the New Zealand family.
Cutfield had been involved in building ships for 30 years in the Mediterranean, as well as racing 470s in his youth, before becoming the captain of luxury yachts eight years ago. He had reportedly been with a Turkish billionaire before working for Mr Lynch.
Witnesses said the boat disappeared beneath the waves in a matter of minutes, baffling naval experts who said a boat as large as the Bayesian would have been designed to stay afloat for many hours despite taking on water. Fifteen people escaped before it capsized and the body of one person who died was swiftly recovered. That left six passengers unaccounted for - Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah; Judy and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda Morvillo.
However, there was little chance of finding more survivors, rescuers said. “The fear is that the bodies got trapped inside the vessel,” said Salvatore Cocina, head of civil protection in Sicily. The boat was lying at a depth of 49 metres (160 feet), giving divers only 8-10 minutes at the wreck site before they had to resurface. Entering the boat was also proving difficult, said the fire brigade, which is leading the search operation. “Inside the sailing ship the spaces are very confined, and if you hit an obstacle it is very complicated to move forward, just as it is very difficult to find alternative routes,” said fire spokesman Luca Cari.
One official, who declined to be named, said the divers had opened one access point, but this did not mean they could easily reach all parts of the submerged vessel. Fire department diver Marco Tilotta told reporters the boat appeared to be intact and was lying on its right side. Divers had not ascertained whether the 72-metre-long mast had snapped somewhere along its length during the tempest. Karsten Borner, the skipper of a boat that had been moored alongside the Bayesian, said the yacht flipped on its side soon after the storm hit and sank within two minutes, giving those below deck little time to get to safety.
To donate: https://www.gofundme.com/f/for-all-the-crew-of-sy-bayesian?attribution_id=sl:c67269f0-1bb3-42ad-ae8b-582f9bc92f48&utm_campaign=man_ss_icons&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link