A 27m yacht sank just 200m from Paloma Beach near Nice
French Police have
launched an investigation after an anchored super yacht sank just 200
metres from the shore near Nice. Four people were aboard the 27-metre (88ft) Vals II
when it started to take on water, but all crew and guests managed to escape before she went
down off Paloma beach.
Trapped air kept her bow
above the water, and the Gendarme Maritime of Nice and Municipal Police from
Saint Jean Cap Ferrat placed floating booms around the scene to prevent possible
pollution from the estimated 6,000 litres of fuel aboard.
Vals II was built in
1995 by Istanbul-based Proteksan Turquoise and is reported to have recently had her interior completely refurbished.
“It was about
three o’clock in the morning when, due to a leak, probably at one of the
engines, our yacht quickly filled with water”, said one of Val II’s crew.
“Although we operated two large bildge pumps, we couldn’t manage to stop the flood”.
