Water is being pumped out of the Bayesian superyacht as the British vessel is gradually lifted out of the sea off the coast of Sicily. The 56-metre (184ft) vessel is expected to be lifted clear of the water on Saturday as part of a 25 million euro (£21 million)operation to recover the wreckfor investigators to examine. It is being cradled by eight steel cables which are attached to a giant crane on board a floating platform called the Hebo Lift 10, brought all the way from the Netherlands. The yacht sank in a violent storm last August with the loss of seven livesincluding Mike Lynch,the billionaire British tech businessman and his teenage daughter Hannah. Journalists and camera crews were taken out to the coast guard ship from the fishing port of Porticello, just half a mile from where the Bayesian capsized 10 months ago. Over the past few days,salvage teams have worked to ease the hullinto an upright position and give access to the yacht's right side, which had previously been lying flat on the seabed 50 metres underwater. "The Bayesian is on the surface but not clear of the sea as yet," a spokesman for British salvage company TMC Marine told The Telegraph. "Pumping out of sea water will continue and it will be lunchtime, following a series of lifting and resting procedures to satisfy the salvage team, before Bayesian is fully and finally out of the water." Pumping out the water from the Bayesian will make the vessel lighter and easier to manoeuvre, a senior coast guard officer said. Speaking on the deck of the coast guard ship Diciotti, captain Michele Maltese said the yacht's fuel tanks remain intact, but that thermal cameras are being used to check for any potential fuel leaks. "We are here to make sure there's no leakage or impact on the environment," he said. "Our job is to deliver the yacht to the judicial authorities in the best possible condition." The yacht's 72-metre (236ft) mast, which was cut off earlier this week by a remote controlled sub, will be retrieved from the seabed next week. The battered Bayesianwill be transported on Sunday to the port of Termini Imerese along the coast of Sicily. It was originally expected to be raised last month, but salvage efforts were delayedafter a diver died during underwater workon May 9, prompting greater use of remote-controlled equipment. About 70 specialist personnel had been mobilised to Porticello from across Europe to work on the recovery operation, which began last month. Inquest proceedings in the UK are looking at the deaths of Mr Lynch and his daughter, as well as Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, 70, and his wife, Judy Bloomer, 71, who were all British nationals. Marine Accident Investigation Branch investigators said in an interim report that the Bayesian was knocked over by "extreme wind". The yacht had a vulnerability to winds, but the owner, captain and crew would not have known of its inherent structural weaknesses, the report said. US lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, andCanadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the vessel, also died. Fifteen people, including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, were rescued. Mr Lynch and his daughter were said to have lived in the vicinity of London and the Bloomers lived in Sevenoaks in Kent. The tycoon founded software giant Autonomy in 1996 and was cleared in June last year of carrying out a massive fraud over the sale of the firm to Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2011. The boat trip was a celebration ofMr Lynch's acquittal in the casein the US. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
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