Captain Who Saw Sicily Yacht Sink Says Mike Lynch’s Wife Didn’t Want to Leave Scene Without Husband and Daughter
Borner says rescued passengers, which included Angela Bacares — whose husband Mike Lynch and daughter Hannah didn't survive — said there were still people inside
Courtesy of Karsten Borner
Karsten BornerKarsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, recalls the weather deteriorating rapidly in the early morning of Aug. 19 when the Bayesian sank
He tells PEOPLE that he and his first mate located the survivors of the sinking aboard a raft
Borner says survivor Angela Bacares didn’t initially want medical attention following her rescue because her husband Mike Lynch and their daughter "were still not found"
Related: Could Open Hatches or a Large Mast Have Contributed to Sicily Yacht Sinking? What We Know So Far
Borner, whose boat was nearby, tells PEOPLE that he noticed the weather deteriorated very rapidly around 3 a.m. local time on Aug. 19.
“The weather turned very quickly and reached us even more quickly,” he says. “And the Bayesian was there at the time. It was anchored like us. We kept an eye on it. We had turned the engine on to maintain our position in case the anchor didn’t hold and were carefully watching it to keep at a distance from it as well. We were the only two ships out in the bay.”
According to Borner, the weather turned into heavy rain, wind and lightning for a brief period. Then, the captain and his crew saw the Bayesian sink.
Courtesy of Karsten Borner
Related: Authorities Launch Manslaughter Investigation After Identifying the Victims of Sicily Yacht Tragedy
Borner also noticed four injured people, including Lynch's wife and Hannah's mother, Angela Bacares. “This was after the storm had passed,” he says, “because the wind appeared very suddenly out of the blue and it also stopped very, very quickly. When it passed, it was quiet again. And that’s when we were able to go out to search.”
He learned that the crew of the Bayesian gave first aid to those in the raft. The yacht survivors later boarded his ship, and his crew took care of them. “We helped them with bandages and stuff, and dry towels and a blanket for the baby,” Borner says. “We also handed out blankets to everyone and dry clothes and so on.”
ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty
Karsten Borner, captain of the sailing boat Sir Robert Baden Powell, is pictured on a small boat in Porticello near Palermo, on August 20, 2024 a day after the British-flagged luxury yacht Bayesian sank with 22 people onboard
The captain tells PEOPLE that he was busy contacting the coast guard and urging for medical help. “The coast guard hadn't arrived yet at that point,” Borner says, “but when we came back with the survivors, they had already been on the VHF radio and were asking for news of the Bayesian as they too noticed it had disappeared. It took some time for them to arrive, as they have one small in Porticello and the rest came from Palermo and elsewhere
The survivors told Borner there were still people inside the capsized yacht, which led the tender to be sent out again. “They looked around at sea and obviously didn't find anything,” Borner says.
Related: Friends Pay Tribute to Hannah Lynch as 6th Body Recovered from Sunken Sicily Yacht: 'Beautiful Soul'
Borner says that the injured survivors were taken by the Italian coast guard and brought to waiting ambulances.
“[Bacares] didn't want to leave because her husband and her daughter were still down," he adds. "She was picked up a little bit later because I asked the coast guard to take her as I thought she needed medical help. Then, over the course of the next two, three hours don't know exactly how much later the coast guards came and the rest of the Bayesian people went away with them.
The exact cause of the yacht’s sinking remains unknown and there are several theories about what contributed to the disaster.
Ambrogio Cartosio, the Chief Prosecutor of Termini Imerese, announced on Aug. 24 that authorities were launching manslaughter and negligent shipwreck investigations in connection with the sinking.
Meanwhile, the yacht’s captain, James Cutfield, 50, of New Zealand, had been interrogated for the third time by prosecutors, PEOPLE previously reported.
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