Further autopsies of the victims of the Bayesian superyacht sinking have been completed, revealing the cause of death for four of those killed on board was not by drowning.
The Bayesian, a 160-foot luxury yacht, capsized on August 19 after it was caught in a violent storm in the early hours of the morning, causing it to sink.
There had been 22 people on board, comprised of 12 passengers and 10 crew members, and 15 people were rescued while seven tragically lost their lives.
Those killed in the incident were British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and his teenage daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, his wife Neda, and the yacht's chef, Recaldo Thomas.
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The results of the autopsies for Morvillo and his wife, as well as Bloomer and his wife, have been revealed, citing that all of them died from lack of oxygen rather than drowning.
Italian outlet la Repubblica reported that the victims are believed to have been trapped alive and died of "dry drowning", caused by the oxygen depleting in the pocket of air they were trying to remain in once the ship began to sink.
According to the outlet, none of the four passengers had any water in their lungs, trachea, or stomach, meaning they did not die from drowning.
Pathologists from the Palermo Institute of Forensic Medicine established that the Morvillos and Bloomers had died from asphyxiation when the air pocket they had huddled in for safety ran out of oxygen and became toxic with carbon dioxide.
The four victims' causes of death have been listed as "death by confinement," as per the publication.
The bodies of the Morvillos and Bloomers were found inside the same cabin as the body of Lynch, on the left hand side of the yacht.
Lynch's 18-year-old daughter's body was also found on the same side of the boat, in the next cabin along.
The ship currently remains underwater, having sank and tilted onto its right-hand side.
With the victims having been found in rooms on the left hand side of the yacht, experts believe they were likely awake when the ship sank and had moved to parts of the vessels where there were air pockets in the hopes of surviving until they were rescued.
However, with the limited amount of air within the rooms, the air soon became toxic as the passengers breathed in the oxygen and breathed out carbon dioxide.
The publication reported that additional tests will be done to confirm the findings of dry drowning.
A local outlet reported, as cited by the New York Post, that survivor Angela Bacares - Lynch's wife and Hannah's mother - had tried to warn those below deck that the ship was in trouble, but had been unable to reach the cabins after stepping on broken glass as the ship quickly filled with water.
Thomas, the ship's cook, was the first of the deceased to be found, with his body being located floating next to the sunken yacht.
The autopsies of Thomas, Lynch, and Hannah are scheduled to take place on Friday.
An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the Bayesian's capsizing, with stormy weather in the region believed to be a contributing factor.
Three of the Bayesian's crew, including its captain James Cutfield, are also being investigated for suspected negligent manslaughter and causing the shipwreck.
