One person is dead and six are missing after a superyacht carrying mostly British passengers was caught in a tornado and sank off the coast of Sicily, according to reports in Italy.
A one-year-old English girl is among 15 people who were rescued after the 56-meter (183ft) sailboat went under the water, Italian daily newspaper Corriere Della Sera reports.
The girl reportedly arrived at a children's hospital with her mother who was given chest stitches for a slight graze.
The mother later described how she briefly lost the girl in the water before they boarded a lifeboat together.
It came before divers saw "corpses through the portholes" of the wreck as they recovered the body of a man next to it at a depth of around 50 metres (163ft) this morning, Salvo Cocina, the head of the Civil Protection of Sicily, said.
Follow live updates: People missing after superyacht sinks
The British-flagged superyacht, named Bayesian, was anchored off the coast of Porticello in Palermo on the Italian island when it capsized at around 4:30am local time (3:30am UK time), according to ship-tracking site Marine Traffic.
Local media said waterspouts, essentially tornadoes which form over water, were seen as strong winds battered the area overnight.
The vessel, described as one of the largest superyachts in the world, had a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers from Britain, America and Canada, the Italian coast guard said.
Italian news outlets have reported that most of those on board were British, and claim the other people on the boat were from New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Ireland. British-French citizens were also among the 22 people on the superyacht, according to reports.
The nationality of the man whose body was recovered has not yet been reported.
'I saw it sinking with my own eyes'
The 35-year-old mother who survived the ordeal with her baby girl has told Italian media how she managed to board a lifeboat with 10 other people as the boat capsized.
Speaking to the Giornale Di Sicilia newspaper, she said: "For two seconds I lost my baby in the sea, then I immediately hugged her again amid the fury of the waves.
"I held her tightly, close to me, while the sea was stormy. Many were screaming. Luckily the lifeboat inflated and 11 of us managed to get on board."
Pietro Asciutto, a fisherman from Porticello who witnessed the storm, told the paper: "I was at home when the tornado hit. I immediately closed all the windows. Then I saw the boat, it had only one mast, it was very big. I saw it suddenly sink."
He added: "I think the whirlwind came from Porticello... shortly afterwards I went down to Santa Nicolicchia Bay to get a better look at what was happening.
"The boat was still floating, then all of a sudden it disappeared. I saw it sinking with my own eyes."
Fabio Cefalu, another local fisherman, called rescue services after spotting the wrecked boat off Porticello.
He said: "Around 3.55am we witnessed the whirlwind. After a quarter of an hour we saw a flare 500 meters away from the dock.
"Around 4:35am we went out to sea for the rescue, however, we only saw the remains of the boat floating. There were no men in the sea. So we immediately called the harbour master's office."
A spokesman for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: "We are in contact with the local authorities following an incident in Sicily, and stand ready to provide consular support to British nationals affected."
Camper and Nicholsons, which provided yacht management services for the Bayesian, has confirmed the vessel sank at around 04:30 local time.
The company said in a statement: "There were a total of 12 guests and 10 crew onboard.
"The Italian Coast Guard is leading search and rescue operations, and has safely recovered 15 individuals. Efforts to locate the seven missing persons continue.
"Our priority is assisting with the ongoing search and providing all necessary support to the rescued passengers and crew."
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