Authorities open manslaughter probe into superyacht sinking off Sicilian coast [Video]

Authorities investigating the sinking of a superyacht off the Sicilian coast that claimed the lives of seven people said a manslaughter probe has been launched in the case.

“We have opened a file against unknown persons with the hypothesis of negligent shipwreck manslaughter,” Ambrogio Cartosio, the chief prosecutor of the Sicilian town Termini Imerese, said Saturday at a press conference.

Cartosio added, “We are taking care to keep the investigation secret as this is the law.”

The prosecutor said the ship’s captain, who survived the sinking, is not currently detained but asked that he remain available in Sicily so the prosecutors can speak to him again.

Investigators also revealed that it’s believed the ship was hit by a downburst – a powerful wind system originating from a thunderstorm that can reach 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour — and not a waterspout, as authorities and some experts had previously thought.