The yacht that was struck by lightning yesterday morning, August 18th, while sailing towards Sicily had departed from the port of Porto Torres.
The 24-meter vessel, flying the British flag, suffered a total blackout approximately 40 miles northeast of the island of Ustica. Lightning, which struck the yacht due to bad weather, disabled its radios and telephones, forcing the crew to call for assistance using its emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB).
The activation generated an automatic satellite signal, received by the international Cospas-Sarsat system and forwarded to the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (IMRCC) in Rome, which immediately began coordinating the rescue operations.
The vessel, carrying four people, was reached by the Coast Guard rescue unit, the "Natale De Grazia," which was engaged in operations in the area. The operations were coordinated by the Palermo Coast Guard. Fortunately, the crew members were only slightly frightened; they were escorted safely aboard the same vessel to the port of Palermo.