British tech tycoon Mike Lynch’s “devastated” family broke their silence Friday after the bodies of the entrepreneur and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were pulled from the wreckage of the sunken Bayesian superyacht.
“The Lynch family is devastated, in shock and is being comforted and supported by family and friends,” a spokesperson for the family said in their first public comments since the yacht sank off the coast of Sicily five days ago.
“Their thoughts are with everyone affected by the tragedy. They would like to sincerely thank the Italian coastguard, emergency services and all those who helped in the rescue.”
The grief-stricken remarks came soon after specialist divers revealed they had located the body of Lynch’s teen daughter inside the sunken vessel and brought her ashore.
Tributes quickly flowed in for the teen as friends, teachers and relatives lamented how the recent high school graduate had been “taken on the precipice of her life.”
“Hannah lived, loved, cared, thought and felt more deeply than anyone I have ever known. Growing up with her and being best friends has been the greatest privilege of my life,” her friend, Angelica Read, told The Telegraph.
“Hannah was charming and ferociously intelligent with an insatiable thirst for life and knowledge. She was also warm, loving and deeply considerate; remarkably for her age,” Patrick Jacob, a friend of the Lynch family, added.
Sushovan Hussain, a close friend of Hannah’s father, also paid tribute, telling the outlet: “We have known Hannah since her birth, and for her to be taken on the precipice of her life is cruel beyond belief.”
The teenager had been the last person unaccounted for after the yacht went down after being struck by a pre-dawn storm on Monday.
The bodies of the other five dead passengers — including her father and Big Apple-based attorney Christopher Morvillo — were recovered Wednesday and Thursday from inside the hull of the sunken vessel following an intense and difficult search operation.
The others recovered Morvillo’s wife, Neda, as well as Morgan Stanley exec Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy.
Search teams had discovered the body of the on-ship chef, Ricardo Thomas, shortly after the Bayesian sank.
Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who is Hannah’s mother, was among the 15 who managed to escape before the vessel capsized and sank.
