Four British nationals and two Americans are among the six people missing after the yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Sicily near Palermo this morning, with a frantic search currently underway.

#Palermo, naufragio imbarcazione davanti alla costa di Porticello, 15 persone salvate, 7 segnalate come disperse: dall’alba #sommozzatori dei #vigilidelfuoco impegnati nelle ricerche. Relitto individuato a 50 metri di profondità, in arrivo sommozzatori speleo [#19agosto 10:00] pic.twitter.com/IJGP2aRRWB

— Vigili del Fuoco (@vigilidelfuoco) August 19, 2024

Fifteen of the 22 passengers, including a one-year-old baby and its mother, were rescued after the vessel capsized when a waterspout hit the area off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, around 5 AM. According to Corriere, the body of one passenger was found floating next to the yacht this morning.

It is a depiction of a tragedy that could have been even more devastating if rescue operations hadn’t started immediately, during which 16 of the 22 passengers on the British-flagged sailing yacht were saved. The yacht had anchored overnight off the coast of Porticello, close to Palermo.

Among the survivors was a one-year-old girl from England, named Sophie, who was held in the waves by a firefighter. He handed her over to the coastguard for a race to the children’s hospital, where she arrived with her mother, who had received stitches on her chest for a minor abrasion.

The intervention occurred as the father arrived at the adult emergency room. “They are all in good condition,” reassured Domenico Cipolla, head of the pediatric hospital’s emergency department. “We managed to have the parents talk on the phone, with doctors and nurses all moved, also because the little girl is fine, her vitals are good, and we’re conducting tests only for precautionary reasons.”

Severe Weather Hits the Area

The severe weather that has hit western Sicily had been anticipated for some time and finally struck in the worst possible way, with a storm and waterspout generating waves strong enough to overturn the 56-meter yacht, which sank while nearly all passengers were in their cabins. CCTV footage from around 4 AM today shows a torrent of wind and rain hitting Santa Nicolicchia—a part of Porticello where the Bayesian was anchored.

#Palermo, naufragio imbarcazione a Porticello: recuperato dai #sommozzatori dei #vigilidelfuoco il corpo senza vita di un uomo, all’esterno del relitto. Proseguono le operazioni di ricerca con il coordinamento in mare della @guardiacostiera [#19agosto 11:30] pic.twitter.com/Y2m9o5ohCe

— Vigili del Fuoco (@vigilidelfuoco) August 19, 2024

Strong winds swept away umbrellas, flower pots, tables, and chairs in a matter of seconds, with the local restaurant that shared the footage saying, “In a moment, the tornado took everything!”

? #Palermo "Bayesian", così si chiama la barca a vela affondata questa mattina davanti a #Porticello. Ora si trova a 49 metri di profondità. Delle 22 persone a bordo, 7 sono ancora disperse. Nel video gli effetti del nubifragio che sarebbe all'origine della tragedia pic.twitter.com/G3ObhxaTxx

— Rai Radio1 (@Radio1Rai) August 19, 2024

The owners of Baia Santa Nicolicchia stated that they were able to open later in the morning once the storm had passed, but added, “We have no memory of anything like this in our area.”

Fire Department divers continue to search around the yacht, which is now at a depth of 50 meters and half a nautical mile from the shore.