Latest news with #RecaldoThomas
The Sun
18-05-2025
- The Sun
Family of ‘friendly' chef killed in Bayesian superyacht tragedy ‘want justice for his death and will seek a payout'
THE family of a chef who was killed in the Bayesian superyacht tragedy wants "justice" for his death. Recaldo Thomas, 59, was among the seven people who died after Brit billionaire Mike Lynch's yacht sank off the coast of Sicily during a storm last year. 7 7 7 Recaldo's family are now seeking compensation for his tragic death - and they could be in line for a $40 million payout. The chef's sister-in-law Joycelyn Palmer told MailOnline: "We just want justice and yes, we will be looking at compensation, someone must pay for what happened." Last week a report detailing the "vulnerability" of the yacht revealed how the tragedy unfolded. A thorough investigation has shown that the ship was likely knocked over by 'extreme wind' and was not able to recover. But Palmer believes the yacht's 236ft mast may have also played a part in the tragic sinking. Recaldo's sister-in-law said: "I looked up the yacht and when I saw the mast I just thought that must have something to do with what happened. "You can even see it in one of the last pictures he sent us." She also claimed the crew were at fault as they had taken the weather for granted and didn't alert the captain until it was "too late". Palmer recalled the emotional turmoil the family experienced in the aftermath of the tragedy. She said it took six long weeks to get Recaldo's body, meaning they were unable to have an open-casket funeral and say their goodbyes properly. Palmer described her brother-in-law as a lovely man who had a heart of gold and an infectious smile. The family's lawyer said they were looking at a US lawsuit against "various entities". They added that a $40million pay-out would not be out of the question for the "emotional loss". Recaldo was among seven passengers who died when the 184ft yacht capsized and sank on August 19. Anchored off the coast of Porticello Harbour in Palermo, a downburst of stormy winds hit the boat causing it to topple. It sunk to the sea floor in minutes and prompted a huge five-day search operation with specialist divers, underwater drones and helicopters. Recaldo was found dead near the wreck site on August 19, but it took several more days to recover six missing guests including the Brit billionaire and his daughter. New York lawyer Chris Morvillo and wife Neda also died, as did Morgan Stanley international chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy. Just two months before the disaster, Lynch had been cleared of carrying out a massive fraud over the sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011. The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal in the case in the US. 7 7 An interim report by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch revealed last week that the yacht had a 'vulnerability' to lighter winds which the owner and crew may not have known about. Andrew Moll, chief inspector of marine accidents, said: "The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over. "Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70° the situation was irrecoverable. "The results will be refined as the investigation proceeds, and more information becomes available." The salvage operation for the superyacht is officially underway. Floating cranes, remote-controlled robots, and specialist divers amongst other marine experts are all helping to recovery the vessel. But the operation had to be put on pause just days after it started when a diver died. The diver, who is thought to be a Dutch national, reportedly died when working 160ft below the ocean alongside other recovery workers to cut the boom of the yacht. After an unsuccessful attempt trying to cut the section, the divers are believed to have used a blow torch. Local media speculated that the man was hit by part of the cut boom as it came off whilst he was underwater. But police said they have launched a probe to understand what exactly caused the man's death. According to other local media reports, an underwater explosion was heard by at least one person before the man was found dead. 7 7 Inside the Bayesian's final 16 minutes By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter Data recovered from the Bayesian's Automatic Identification System (AIS) breaks down exactly how it sank in a painful minute-by-minute timeline. At 3.50am on Monday August 19 the Bayesian began to shake "dangerously" during a fierce storm, Italian outlet Corriere revealed. Just minutes later at 3.59am the boat's anchor gave way, with a source saying the data showed there was "no anchor left to hold". After the ferocious weather ripped away the boat's mooring it was dragged some 358 metres through the water. By 4am it had began to take on water and was plunged into a blackout, indicating that the waves had reached its generator or even engine room. At 4.05am the Bayesian fully disappeared underneath the waves. An emergency GPS signal was finally emitted at 4.06am to the coastguard station in Bari, a city nearby, alerting them that the vessel had sunk. Early reports suggested the disaster struck around 5am local time off the coast of Porticello Harbour in Palermo, Sicily. The new data pulled from the boat's AIS appears to suggest it happened an hour earlier at around 4am. Some 15 of the 22 onboard were rescued, 11 of them scrambling onto an inflatable life raft that sprung up on the deck. A smaller nearby boat - named Sir Robert Baden Powell - then helped take those people to shore.
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Family of chef who died alongside six others on the doomed Bayesian superyacht could be in line for massive £40MILLION compensation
The family of a chef who died aboard the doomed superyacht Bayesian is seeking 'justice' for his death - and could be in line for a $40 million compensation payout. Canadian Antiguan Recaldo Thomas, 59, was among seven people who drowned when the yacht owned by British tech billionaire Mike Lynch went down in a violent storm off the coast of Sicily last summer. Mr Lynch and his daughter Hannah, 18, were also among the victims, and an interim report by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch last week highlighted design flaws in the yacht and crew response as possible factors in the sinking. Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Recaldo's sister-in-law Joycelyn Palmer, who is executor of his estate, said:' We just want justice and yes, we will be looking at compensation, someone must pay for what happened. 'We all knew Recaldo as Rick, and he was a lovely, lovely man with a heart of gold, and his smile would light up the room, I never heard him say he'd had a bad day, and he loved working on yachts, he was at sea for more than 30 years. 'He was friendly and endearing, and he was such a positive person, full of goodness, and when he died, it was a terrible shock for all of us, and it still upsets us to talk about it because he didn't need to die. 'It took us six weeks to get his body back, and because of that, we had to have a closed casket, and we couldn't even say goodbye properly; it hurt all of us really badly.' Last week's MAIB report said the £30 million yacht was doomed after it was hit by 80.6mph winds, causing it to tilt violently on its side, and it was unable to straighten as the freak storm hit off the coast of Porticello on August 19. The report highlighted how the keel had not been lowered and that 'vulnerabilities' in the yacht's stability had not been highlighted in the 184ft Bayesian's information manual carried onboard. But Mrs Palmer, who lives in Antigua, has also questioned whether the yacht's 236ft tall mast also played a part in the yacht sinking in just 16 minutes after it was hit by a freak storm with 70 knot winds. Sharing pictures of Recaldo on the Bayesian taken just hours before he died, she said:' I looked up the yacht and when I saw the mast I just thought that must have something to do with what happened. You can even see it in one of the last pictures he sent us. 'But I think that was one of many factors, were the manufacturers aware of what the mast might do because once the yacht tilted, there was nothing that could be done.' 'Also, the crew were definitely at fault; they seem to have taken the weather report for granted, and as a result, didn't act on time. One guy filmed the storm as it approached and put it on social media. 'The crew didn't alert the captain until it was too late, so they were negligent, and then the manufacturers don't appear to have been aware of the safety issues. 'The more I read about it, the more upset I get because it looks as if a number of circumstances all came together and it cost my brother-in-law his life. 'Any compensation is going to be handled by our lawyers, and anything we get will go towards creating a legacy for Rick in Antigua, where he lived, and to celebrate his life. 'To know he has gone has been really rough. I cope by thinking he is away on one of his voyages.' Lawyer James Healy-Pratt, who is representing the family, said:' They have serious concerns about a series of failures evidently involved in the causes of this tragedy. 'These include failures in design, safety certificates, the seaworthiness of the yacht, and the actions of some of the crew during the storm. 'The mast had a longer wingspan than a jumbo and would have acted as an aerofoil in a storm.' Mr Healy-Pratt added they were looking at a 'US lawsuit against various entities' in the future and'$40 million pay-out would not be out of the question for an emotional loss'. He added: 'Those entities include the American Bureau of Shipping, Camper and Nicholsons, who managed the yacht and Angela Bacares, Mr Lynch's wife.' Mrs Bacares survived the sinking, and Mr Healy-Pratt said the family noted she was 'up on deck when a number of questionable decisions were being made by the crew'. He highlighted how a recent lawsuit in New York had paid out $90 million to relatives of the man killed in a 2018 helicopter crash. Italian Sea Group, which bought Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian, has insisted the yacht 'was unsinkable' and declined to comment following the MAIB report. The Bayesian sank in just 16 minutes after being hit by the violent 'mesocyclonic storm front' which has violent downdrafts and surface winds over 100mph (87 knots). In its report, the MAIB said the captain and crew would have had no idea of the yacht's vulnerabilities as they were not laid out in the stability information booklet onboard. Salvage crews had hoped to raise the Bayesian – which is lying 160ft below the surface - this weekend, but the death nine days ago of a Dutch diver has delayed the £20 million operation until later this month. Minute by minute, how the Bayesian tragedy unfolded August 18 - PM: The Bayesian was anchored at Cefalù on the northern coast of Sicily to shelter from the forecast weather and to allow for easy disembarkation of guests the following day. August 19 - 00.30am: Having checked the weather the captain and the last guest had retired, leaving deckhand (DH1) and the evening steward (S1) on duty. 01.00am: The second deckhand (DH2) took over the watch. The wind at this time was noted as being no more than 8kts (9.2pmh). 03.00am: DH2 noted the wind as being at 8kts (9.2pmh) from the west but thought that the thunderclouds and lightning seemed to be getting closer. 03.55am: The deckhand 'videoed the advancing storm and posted it to their social media feed' before closing the hatches and cockpit windows. 03.57am: The winds had picked up to 30kts (35mph) and the Bayesian was listing and dragging its anchor. 04.00am: The deckhand ran to wake up the skipper and the crew leapt into action and began preparing to manoeuvre the Bayesian by starting the generators and steering pumps. The rest of the crew, woken by either the captain or the yacht's change of motion, got up and made their way out of the crew accommodation. Chef Recaldo Thomas was spotted in the galley stowing cutlery, pots and pan and called out 'Good morning!' to nearby stewards. The Bayesian was lying with the wind about 60 degree off the port bow and moving at 1.8kts south-south-east of its original position. Two guests – a British couple – had been woken by the movements and decided to head to the saloon with their baby. 4.06am: Disaster struck as the wind suddenly increased to more than 70kts (80.5mph) ripping the awning away. The Bayesian 'violently heeled over' in less than 15 seconds to a 90-degree angle. The sudden movement sent people as well as furniture flying across the deck leaving five people including the captain injured while a deckhand was thrown into the sea. Two guests trapped in their cabin were forced to used furniture drawers as an improvised ladder to escape into the saloon area. The yacht's crew were able to push four guests through the cascading water up to the skipper on the flying bridge. The captain called for the guests and crew to swim clear of the mast and boom as the vessel sank. 04.22am: The crew had launched the Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRB). They noted that the wind had eased and that Bayesian was only a short distance from shore. In the water, a deckhand(DH2) improvised a tourniquet for one of the guest's gashed arm while a cushion was used as a flotation device foe the baby. Some of the survivors were treading water and others held on to some cushions that had floated free from Bayesian. One of the guests frantically searched for other survivors in vain using the torch from their phone - while the captain and chief officer frantically freed the life raft from the sinking wreck. 04.24am: The captain and chief officer frantically freed the life raft from the sinking wreck. It was was inflated and the survivors were able to get inside it where the crew began administering first aid. The skipper tried to raise the alarm by shouting at and then paddling towards the nearby vessel the Sir Robert Baden Powell. 04.34am: The Chief Engineer fired a red parachute flare from the life raft. Despite the winds being calm at the surface, the flare was carried sideways. He then used the life raft's torch to signal towards a hotel on the cliffs above them, passing cars, and Sir Robert Baden Powell. 04.43am: The Chief engineer fired a second parachute flare that was seen by the crew of Sir Robert Baden Powell. Responding to the flare, the skipper dispatched its tender towards the visible lights of the EPIRB and life raft. 04.53am: The tender carrying the 15 survivors returned to Sir Robert Baden Powell and a brief search was look for the missing seven people who were also on board.
Daily Mail
16-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Furious family of chef killed in Bayesian superyacht disaster lash out at crew for their response to storm forecasts and raise concerns over 'series of failures' for the tragedy
The family of the chef who died in the Bayesian superyacht tragedy off the coast of Sicily last year have criticised the crew's response to the violent storm that caused the vessel to sink. Cook Recaldo Thomas, 59, was one of the seven people who died in the disaster last August aboard the luxury yacht owned by British tech billionaire Mike Lynch - who also lost his life alongside 18-year-old daughter Hannah. Mr Thomas's family said on Thursday that they were concerned about a 'series of failures' in the way the crew responded to a storm that struck the ship, causing it to capsize and sink. 'They have serious concerns about a series of failures evidently involved in the causes of this tragedy – failures in the design, safety certification and seaworthiness of the Bayesian, as well as the management by some of the crew to deal with a forecast mesocyclone storm,' lawyer James Healy-Pratt is reported as saying on behalf of Mr Thomas's family. Their remarks come after an investigation by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said this week the crew of the doomed £30million yacht were 'unaware' of its 'vulnerabilities.' After reading the report, Mr Thomas's family said they believed his death was 'preventable.' The family also condemned how the Bayesian was an 'outlier in design' with its single mast structure that 'acted like an aerofoil in the storm conditions,' the lawyer added. However, the interim report into the disaster found that the 'vulnerabilities' were 'unknown to either the owner or the crew' of the vessel' as they were not included in the stability information book carried on board. The report also shows that wind speeds of 73mph directly on the vessel's beam would 'likely result in the vessel capsizing'. Andrew Moll, Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents, said: 'The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over. 'Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70 degree the situation was irrecoverable.' Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Bayesian's builders The Italian Sea Group, has previously said the sinking was 'down to human error' and insisted that it was 'unsinkable'. The detailed report provides an agonising breakdown of events, charting for the first time how the tragedy unfolded minute by minute off the coast near Porticello. The MAIB have said however that this is an interim report based on limited verified evidence. The report comes after investigators were forced to half the £20million salvage operation of the doomed superyacht after a diver involved tragically lost his life last week. Rob Huijben, 39, died as he worked to remove a boom hinge from Bayesian's trademark 237ft mast at a depth of 160ft as preparatory work for the lift began last Friday. The incident was captured on CCTV by colleagues working on the surface in a support vessel and the Dutchman's body was later recovered by a fellow diver and taken ashore. An autopsy on Thursday revealed that there were no signs of burns on the diver's body, but that his death was compatible with an explosion that may have occurred when a torch used to cut the mast passed through pockets of hydrogen. On the night of August 18, the Bayesian had anchored next to the Sir Robert Baden Powell -a boat which would later rescue survivors – to shelter from the forecast thunderstorm. At 3am, the deckhand on duty noted the wind as being at 8kts (9.2pmh) but thought that the thunderclouds and lightning seemed to be getting closer. Less than an hour later at 3.55am, the deckhand 'videoed the advancing storm and posted it to their social media feed' before closing hatches and cockpit windows. Within minutes the winds had picked up to 30kts (35mph) and the Bayesian was listing and dragging its anchor. At around 4am, the deckhand woke up the skipper and the crew leapt into action by starting the generators and preparing to manoeuvre the Bayesian. Meanwhile a British mother and her partner woke up and took their one-year-old daughter to the boat's saloon. The chef Recaldo Thomas, who would die in the tragedy, was in the galley securing the cutlery, pots and pans and called 'Good morning!' to the nearby stewards. But as disaster struck as the skipper prepared to manoeuvre, the wind suddenly increased to more than 70kts (80.5mph) ripping the awning away. At 4.06am the Bayesian 'violently heeled over' in less than 15 seconds to a 90-degree angle. This sent people as well as furniture flying across the deck leaving five people including the captain were injured while a deckhand was thrown into the sea. Two guests trapped in their cabin were forced to used furniture drawers as an improvised ladder to escape into the saloon area. The report said there was no indication of flooding inside the vessel until water came in over the starboard rails and, within seconds, entered the cabins down the stairwells. The yacht's crew were able to push four guests through the cascading water up to the skipper on the flying bridge. The Chief Officer who had been swept to the back of the saloon and into another air pocket, dived down to open the sliding doors at the end of the saloon and managed to swim clear of the vessel. The captain called for the guests and crew who managed to escape to swim clear of the mast and boom as the vessel sank. In the water, a deckhand improvised a tourniquet for a one of the guest's gashed arms, while a baby was kept afloat on a cushion. In the darkness, some of survivors were treading water while others held on to some cushions that had floated free from the yacht. One of the guests frantically searched for other survivors in vain using the torch from their phone while the captain and chief officer frantically freed the life raft from the sinking wreck. At around 4.24am the liferaft was inflated and the survivors were able to get inside it where the crew began administering first aid. Desperate to raise the alarm with the nearby Sir Robert Baden Powell, the chief engineer fired several flares before they were spotted at 4.43am. The skipper of Sir Robert Baden Powell dispatched its tender towards the 15 survivors and despite searching the area no one else was found. The bodies were subsequently recovered after an agonising five-day search of the wreck on the seabed.
Telegraph
15-05-2025
- Telegraph
Family of chef who died on Bayesian yacht hits out at crew
The family of a chef who died when the British superyacht Bayesian capsized off the coast of Sicily have criticised the crew's response to the violent storm that struck the vessel. Recaldo Thomas, 59, the Canadian-Antiguan cook on the yacht owned by British tech billionaire Mike Lynch, was one of seven people who lost their lives in the tragedy in summer 2024. His family said on Thursday that they had profound concerns about 'a series of failures', including alleged weaknesses in the design of the yacht and the way in which the crew responded to a storm that barrelled over the area on the night of Aug 18 2024. 'They have serious concerns about a series of failures evidently involved in the causes of this tragedy – failures in the design, safety certification and seaworthiness of the Bayesian, as well as the management by some of the crew to deal with a forecast mesocyclone storm,' lawyer James Healy-Pratt said on behalf of the family of Mr Thomas. He said the family noted that Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, 'was up on deck when a number of questionable decisions were being carried out by some of the crew'. They did not expand on specific actions that may or may not have been taken. 'The family note that the Bayesian was an outlier in design with a single mast structure, longer than the wingspan of a jumbo jet, that acted like an aerofoil in the storm conditions,' he added. Some naval architects have said the mast was too heavy and tall for the vessel and that it rendered the boat inherently unstable. The Italian company that built it has rejected those criticisms. The yacht was anchored half a mile off the small Sicilian town of Porticello when it was hit by a freak storm of almost tornado intensity. Amid 70-knot winds and lashing rain, the 184ft-long Bayesian, which boasted a huge, 236ft mast, capsized in 16 minutes. A preliminary investigation by Britain's Marine Accident Investigation Branch, released on Thursday, concluded that the vessel was struck by a 'mesocyclonic storm front' which demonstrated the properties of 'a significant supercell with associated downdrafts and possible near-surface winds in excess of 100 miles per hour (87 knots).' The MAIB commissioned the Met Office to study the weather conditions on the night the huge yacht sank. The Met Office found that 'a mesocyclonic storm was highly likely with an associated supercell being probable.' The Met Office also concluded that 'tornadic waterspouts and downdrafts were possible where local winds could reach extreme hurricane force well in excess of 64 knots.' The hurricane force winds were strong enough to tip the Bayesian over, investigators said. The captain and crew would have had no inkling of its vulnerabilities because they were not documented in the vessel's stability information booklet which sets out a vessel's physical limits, the MAIB report said. After reading the report, Mr Thomas's family said they believed his death was 'preventable'. Mr Healy-Pratt said: 'They know that further evidence and analysis is required in areas including downflooding and seamanship, and they await the final MAIB safety report and its inevitable list of safety recommendations. The Thomas family are firmly resolute in their journey for truth, very public justice and preventing future tragedies.' A multinational operation to raise the wreck of the Bayesian from the seabed resumed on Thursday. It had been suspended last week after the death of a Dutch diver while working underwater. A consortium is now engaged in 'preparatory activities' to recover the yacht from a depth of around 150ft. The yacht is expected to be raised and brought to shore later in May. Aside from Mr Thomas, the victims of the disaster were Mike Lynch, 59, and his daughter Hannah, 18, Jonathan Bloomer, 70, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman, his wife Judy Bloomer, 71, and American lawyer Chris Morvillo, 59, and his wife Neda Morvillo, 57.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Yahoo
Family of chef who died on Bayesian yacht hits out at crew
The family of a chef who died when the British superyacht Bayesian capsized off the coast of Sicily have criticised the crew's response to the violent storm that struck the vessel. Recaldo Thomas, 59, the Canadian-Antiguan cook on the yacht owned by British tech billionaire Mike Lynch, was one of seven people who lost their lives in the tragedy in summer 2024. His family said on Thursday that they had profound concerns about 'a series of failures', including alleged weaknesses in the design of the yacht and the way in which the crew responded to a storm that barrelled over the area on the night of Aug 18 2024. 'They have serious concerns about a series of failures evidently involved in the causes of this tragedy – failures in the design, safety certification and seaworthiness of the Bayesian, as well as the management by some of the crew to deal with a forecast mesocyclone storm,' lawyer James Healy-Pratt said on behalf of the family of Mr Thomas. He said the family noted that Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, 'was up on deck when a number of questionable decisions were being carried out by some of the crew'. They did not expand on specific actions that may or may not have been taken. 'The family note that the Bayesian was an outlier in design with a single mast structure, longer than the wingspan of a jumbo jet, that acted like an aerofoil in the storm conditions,' he added. Some naval architects have said the mast was too heavy and tall for the vessel and that it rendered the boat inherently unstable. The Italian company that built it has rejected those criticisms. The yacht was anchored half a mile off the small Sicilian town of Porticello when it was hit by a freak storm of almost tornado intensity. Amid 70-knot winds and lashing rain, the 184ft-long Bayesian, which boasted a huge, 236ft mast, capsized in 16 minutes. A preliminary investigation by Britain's Marine Accident Investigation Branch, released on Thursday, concluded that the vessel was struck by a 'mesocyclonic storm front' which demonstrated the properties of 'a significant supercell with associated downdrafts and possible near-surface winds in excess of 100 miles per hour (87 knots).' The MAIB commissioned the Met Office to study the weather conditions on the night the huge yacht sank. The Met Office found that 'a mesocyclonic storm was highly likely with an associated supercell being probable.' The Met Office also concluded that 'tornadic waterspouts and downdrafts were possible where local winds could reach extreme hurricane force well in excess of 64 knots.' The hurricane force winds were strong enough to tip the Bayesian over, investigators said. The captain and crew would have had no inkling of its vulnerabilities because they were not documented in the vessel's stability information booklet which sets out a vessel's physical limits, the MAIB report said. After reading the report, Mr Thomas's family said they believed his death was 'preventable'. Mr Healy-Pratt said: 'They know that further evidence and analysis is required in areas including downflooding and seamanship, and they await the final MAIB safety report and its inevitable list of safety recommendations. The Thomas family are firmly resolute in their journey for truth, very public justice and preventing future tragedies.' A multinational operation to raise the wreck of the Bayesian from the seabed resumed on Thursday. It had been suspended last week after the death of a Dutch diver while working underwater. A consortium is now engaged in 'preparatory activities' to recover the yacht from a depth of around 150ft. The yacht is expected to be raised and brought to shore later in May. Aside from Mr Thomas, the victims of the disaster were Mike Lynch, 59, and his daughter Hannah, 18, Jonathan Bloomer, 70, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman, his wife Judy Bloomer, 71, and American lawyer Chris Morvillo, 59, and his wife Neda Morvillo, 57. Fifteen people survived the sinking, including James Cutfield, 51, the New Zealand skipper. 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.
