Bayesian captain James Catfield, 51,
was questioned by Termini Imerese prosecutors for two hours,
ANSA learned on Wednesday.
Catfield was the skipper of the luxury sailboat that sank at
dawn Monday off Porticello near Palermo while the area was hit
by a violent tornado.
State attorneys in Termini Imerese, who have opened an
investigation into the accident, questioned the expert skipper
on Tuesday night to learn more about technical details that
could prove useful to understand what caused the sailboat to
sink in just a few minutes, according to sources close to the
investigation.
Magistrates on Wednesday also questioned the other shipwreck
survivors at the Domina-Zagarella resort where they are staying.
Meanwhile operations continued to search for the missing
passengers with expert teams of divers, as well as ships and
helicopters, coordinated by Palermo coast guards and aided by
coast guard divers from Naples and Messina.
Search operations also include divers who took part in the
mission following the deadly shipwreck of the Concordia, the
cruise ship that sank in the night between January 13 and 14,
2012.
The divers are using a ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) during
their search missions.
The "robot" is able to operate at a depth of up to 300 metres
under water and has an autonomy of six to seven hours - which is
very helpful as, due to the depth at which the wreckage sits,
about 50 metres, divers can only spend about 12 minutes to
search the boat before they need to resurface.
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