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Friends have paid tribute to the “brilliant, caring and beautiful” daughter of tech tycoon Mike Lynch after her body was recovered from the Italian yacht disaster.
Hannah Lynch was one of 22 people onboard her father’s luxury boat the Bayesian when it capsized during stormy weather on Monday. Italian rescue teams retrieved her body, the last of six to be found, on Friday after five days of searching.
Grieving classmates said the 18 year-old, who was set to attend Oxford in a matter of weeks before tragedy struck, was a lover of literature and life.
“The love Hannah had for everything she held dear was passionate and pure,” Katya Lewis said. “She had a warm and beautiful soul. Being with Hannah made me feel whole and happy. She is the most special friend anyone could ask for and I will always love Hannah.”
Hannah had been due to study English at the University of Oxford having recently finished her A-levels, and has been described as a gifted pupil by her former teacher.
Jon Mitropoulos-Monk, Head of English at Latymer Upper School said: “I’ve never taught someone who combined sky-high intellectual ability with warmth and enthusiasm in the way Hannah did.
“She lit up the classroom with her energy, passion for learning and sheer intelligence (though never with a hint of arrogance). One of the best English students in the country, she scored 100% in her English Literature GCSE.”
The bodies of her father Mr Lynch, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, have all been recovered from the wreckage and identified.
The yacht’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, was found and identified on Monday, just a few hours after the vessel capsized. The Italian coastguard have now confirmed that the search has resumed to find the teenager, who remains unaccounted for.
Hannah’s mother, Angela Bacares, was among the 15 survivors who were rescued from a lifeboat after the boat dramatically sank in minutes at around 5am on Monday morning.
Prior to the tragedy, Mr Lynch had been hosting “colleagues and collaborators” in celebration after winning an $11bn fraud case in the US.
Those also killed include Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.
The prestigious Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith, where she had been a pupil, has said they are all “incredibly shocked” after a yacht sank with her onboard.
A spokesperson said: “We are all incredibly shocked by the news that Hannah and her father are among those missing in this tragic incident and our thoughts are with their family and everyone involved as we await further updates.”
Since her father’s death has been confirmed, tributes have flooded in from across the science and technology sector, with David Tabizel, Mr Lynch’s Autonomy co-founder, saying: “The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.”
Mr Lynch was a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK, which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.
Chairman Lord John Browne, who described him as “a human being of great ability”, said: “MikeLynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.
“His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.”
