Palermo Shipwreck: What Caused Millionaire's Yacht to Sink and What Is a Sea Siphon (Video)

According to eyewitnesses to the tragedy near Palermo, they saw a “sea siphon” that formed during the storm and, apparently, caused the sinking of the ship.

Although we are more familiar with another term – “tornado”. It is known that these are “rotating columns of destructive winds protruding from the base of the clouds to the ground”, but few know about sea siphons. It's the same phenomenon, but “inverted”, explains CNN Greece, and appears above water, not on landInstead of dust and debris swirling around the core of a strong wind, we see water mist rising from the surface of the sea.

Like tornadoes, sea siphons are generally short-lived and form very narrow columns, making them difficult to detect with weather radar. But it's not that uncommon. According to the International Tornado Research Center, On August 19 alone, 18 confirmed tornadoes were recorded off the coast of Italy.

In the Northern Hemisphere, sea siphons are most common in late summer and fall when sea temperatures peak, resulting in increased thunderstorm clouds. With rising sea temperatures due to climate change, there are concerns that sea siphons could become more common.

The Mediterranean has seen its warmest sea surface temperatures on record over the past week, which has contributed to the recent storm. Dr Simon Boxall, an oceanographer at the University of Southampton, told In an interview with the BBC, he said that there was still much to learn in the investigation into the cause of the yacht's sinking:

“They (sea siphons) are usually not dangerous. What's interesting is that we saw very little wind until the boat was damaged. And then suddenly the wind increased from three or four miles an hour to 30 or 40 miles an hour and then died down again. And that's what happened on land.”

In answer to the question, what the vessel may have been damaged by a sea siphonhe replied that they were “usually not dangerous,” but it depended on the intensity of the weather events.

The sea north of Sicily is more than three degrees warmer than it normally is at this time of year, he concludes, stressing that this created the conditions for the “perfect storm” that caused the tornado.

The 56 metre long British-flagged sailing vessel Bayesian had 22 people on board and was moored near Porticello harbour when it was hit by a violent storm and the yacht sank.

The search continues for six missing people. Among them British multimillionaire Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah – his wife Angela Bacares survived. Lynch, 59, is one of Britain's best-known tech entrepreneurs. Among the missing are also The head of one of the largest banks in the world, Morgan Stanley, John Bloomer, with his wife and daughter, and his lawyer with his wife.

Rescuers will attempt to enter the sleeping cabin of the sunken yacht today. It is a very complex operation. Rescue services say they have teams of specialist divers who are used to working in small, confined spaces. The depth of the shipwreck is a major challenge.

The action is also complicated by the fact that the boat is lying on its side and the access points are littered with debris, making it very difficult to gain access to the yacht itself. Today, writes The BBC, they want to try to get into the cabin where some of the missing may have slept. Rescue services know that with each passing hour the chances of finding people alive are diminishing. But as one rescuer said, never say never.

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