Superyacht sinks: what happened off Italy coast, how many people were on board - why did My Saga sink?

A massive and expensive superyacht sank off the Italian coast, putting nine people on board in danger.

It came into difficulty around 15km (nine miles) off the coast of Catanzaro, on its way from Gallipoli to Milazzo.

The Italian Coast Guard had to be called to coordinate the rescue of passengers and crew members from the 40-metre luxury vessel after it began sinking in the Ionian Sea on Saturday (20 August).

Video footage of the motor yacht, named ‘My Saga’, shows it sticking out of the water before fully submerging stern-first into the water.

How many people were on board?

According to Super Yacht Times, the yacht was built in 2007 in Italy and was travelling from Gallipoli to Milazzo under a Cayman Islands flag with an Italian crew when it sunk.

All four passengers and five crew members were safely rescued.

The crew were evacuated and no injuries were reported before the whole vessel sank at 1pm local time.

The Coast Guard said worsening weather conditions made it impossible to tow the ship to the port.

A Romanian patrol boat intervened on behalf of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

A second patrol boat from the nearby Italian city of Crotone was used to rescue the crew and attempted to tow the yacht to safety.

But attempts failed and the boat vanished completely.

Why did My Saga sink?

The captain sent out a distress call to the Port Authority of Crotone, with officials told the yacht was taking on a significant amount of water from the stern.

However, it remains unclear why it sank, and the Coast Guard said an investigation was underway.

It comes after a £6 million superyacht sunk after it went up in flames in the UK.

On the Torquay harbourside, the 85ft vessel was consumed by fire, and reportedly drifted out into the harbour after ropes securing it to the pier were burnt.

But the vessel was later secured by the fire service.