Shocking footage shows moment almost $1,000,000 yacht sinks minutes after launching
Topics: Money, World News, Europe
Joe Yates
Featured Image Credit: Newsflash/NX
Topics: Money, World News, Europe
A luxury yacht sank just minutes into its maiden voyage - sending almost $1 million worth of tech underwater.
In a dramatic turn of events, a moment of pure elation for one person turned into a day from hell as they watched their ship, dubbed Dolce Vento, tip to the side and eventually sink after just 15 minutes on Tuesday (September 2).
The incident occurred roughly 600 feet off the coast of Turkey, in the northern Eregli district - or the picturesque city of Zonguldak to be precise.
Fortunately, no one was hurt after the vessel tipped, with the owner, the captain and two crew members all swimming to shore without suffering any injuries, while Coast Guard and port teams were dispatched to set up a security perimeter.
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It took place after having just been built at the Med Yilmaz Shipyard - having taken around five months to complete - and was being readied to deliver where the owner wished for it to be taken, Istanbul.
Recovery work is already underway as rescue teams with technical equipment have also been sent to the $940,000 wreckage.
Shipyard officials said a detailed investigation will be carried out and the cause of the sinking would be determined following technical inspections.
Experts have highlighted that stability problems, such as errors in metacentric height calculations, are among the most significant factors that can cause vessels to capsize or sink.
It comes almost a year after Italian superyacht the Bayesian sank during a violent storm off the coast of Sicily in the early hours of the morning, which saw a tornado rip through the vessel.
Tragically, it resulted in the deaths of seven people, including British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah Lynch, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy, lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda, and the yacht's chef Recaldo Thomas.
There were 22 people on board the the 160-foot yacht at the time, including 12 passengers and 10 crew members.
After almost a year, the boat was successfully raised from the seabed in Sicily in June, as part of a complex salvage operation.
Italian officials are now examining the vessel.
A full investigation is still ongoing, while the an interim safety report released by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) found that the yacht was vulnerable to high winds.