It was “unbelievable” and “absolutely safe”: owner of company that built luxury yacht blames crew for sinking

Giovanni Constantino blames the captain and the rest of the crew for not respecting protocol during the 16 minutes he says they had to save the passengers

The executive director of the Italian Maritime Agency, which owned the company Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian yacht that sank earlier this week off the coast of Sicily during a storm, believes that the cause of the incident This is a failure of protocol on the part of the team.

In statements to Sky NewsGiovanni Constantino of the Perini Navi company pointed out from the event, ensuring that the yacht was “absolutely safe”, having been designed and built to be “impregnable”.

“As the manufacturer of Perini Navi boats, I know very well how they have always been designed and built. Sailboats are known for being the safest,” he said, quoted by the British television station .

Therefore, in the opinion of Giovanni Constantino, the sinking was the result of a failure in the protocol, pointing the finger at the crew, who, he said, had at least 16 minutes for the 22 crew travel on board to save.

“The boat sank because water got into it,” he said, suggesting that the sailboat’s captain, James Cutfield, did not leave a retractable wheel in a safe position, that, lowered, thus allowing water to enter the interior of the vessel. Furthermore, he believes that the hatches of the sailboat were open.

“[O capitão] I should have locked everything. I should have gathered all the passengers in the safe area. That’s the protocol. Nobody should be in the cabin,” said Giovanni Constantino, addressing him Financial Timessaying that what James Cutfield should have done was “start the engine, raise the anchor, point the bow to the wind, and reduce the burn.” ” “This would have guaranteed stability, security and comfort,” he said.

The team of divers still on the site looking for the missing person have not yet confirmed whether the Bayesian’s gut was in the safest position or built to allow water to enter. The Italian and British prosecutors investigating the circumstances of the incident also did not provide information about when water started entering the boat, whether the hatches were open or whether the crew even started the engine. as soon as they noticed the water.

According to the executive director of the Italian Maritime Group, the crew had 16 minutes to save the passengers and avoid the accident. “The pain lasted 16 minutes. The boat did not sink in a minute, as some scientists have been saying. It took 16 minutes to sink”, said Giovanni Constantino, adding that this information can be be verified in the automatic identification system (AIS, in English acronym). The Financial Times found that the AIS data is consistent with the CEO’s description, but notes that his theory about what might have happened during that time cannot be confirmed at this time. .

Giovanni Constantino maintains his theory. “The outer part [do barco] is whole. Water seeped in through the hatches, which were left open. No other explanation is possible. If properly propelled, the boat would have handled the weather comfortably. Comfortably”, he asked.

With 22 people on board, the 56-meter yacht “Bayesian” with the British flag sank off Porticello, a coastal town about 15 kilometers east of Palermo, at around 05:00 hours (04:00 Lisbon) in the -early hours of Monday, after a big storm.

There were twelve passengers and 10 crew members on board the yacht, most of them British, including Mike Lynchnicknamed “Bill Gates of Great Britain”, whose body was found this Thursday. Lynch’s daughter, Hannah, 18, is still missing.