Billionaire’s yacht rammed and sank a tanker
American billionaire J. R. Riedinger’s $51 million yacht crashed into a gas tanker and sank it. According to The New York Post, the accident occurred in the Bahamas. The 63m superyacht Utopia IV collided with the 49m tanker Tropic Breeze off the coast of New Providence.
“The catastrophic force of the collision penetrated the stern of the tanker, causing it to sink to the ocean floor to a depth of about 2,000 feet (about 610 meters),” said Maritime Management, which owns the wreck. It will no longer be possible to raise the tanker to the surface.
In terms of potential environmental damage, the company said all “non-persistent materials”, including LPG, “will vaporize on contact with surface air.”
The crew members of the tanker were rescued by another passing superyacht called Amara.
It’s unclear if Ridinger, CEO of marketing firm Market America and online shopping site Shop.com, was on board Utopia IV.
