A British mum who managed to save her daughter from a yacht that capsized off the coast of Italy yesterday during a storm has revealed she used 'all her strength' to keep the baby afloat.
Charlotte Golunski and her daughter Sophia were among those to have thankfully survived the heartbreaking incident, which has killed one person and seen six left missing.
The colossal ship sank in the port of Porticello in Sicily on Monday (19 August), after it found itself it the eye of violent storm at sunrise.
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A total of 15 people - including Charlotte, her daughter, and her husband James Emsilie - were thankfully rescued from the sinking ship early in the morning.
Speaking to The Times, the horrified mother explained that her family were on the deck when the boat began sinking beneath the water, having been woken up by 'thunder, lightning and waves that made our boat dance'.
"It was the end of the world and my husband and I were struggling to stand up,” she recalled.
It was then that the trio were thrown into the crashing depths below, with Charlotte having temporarily lost hold of her baby girl 'for two seconds'.
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"It was all dark," she told press. "In the water, I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
"I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others."
Thankfully, Charlotte was able to find her daughter in the water and held her close.
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Feeling the weight begin to pull them under the water, however, she was forced to make the decision to hold the infant above her head in an attempt to prevent her from drowning.
Charlotte said she held her daughter 'afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning'.
Her prayers were answered when a lifeboat approached the mother-daughter pair, and pulled the duo to safety.
"Many were shouting, and luckily the lifeboat inflated and 11 of us were able to climb in," Charlotte continued.
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James was also saved, and the family-of-three was taken to hospital for treatment.
Twelve passengers who were travelling within the vessel - known as the Bayesian, which flies under the British flag - were guests, while 10 were crew.
Among those who have been saved is the ship's captain, according to a member of the coastguard.
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Sadly, six other passengers - including British tech boss Mike Lynch - are still remain missing at sea.
A helicopter was quickly dispatched, as well as several rescue boats from the coastguard, the local fire department and the civil protection service, in the hope of finding those still lost at sea.
Charlotte told press that she and her family had been guests on the boat, having been invited by her boss.
She added at the time that she wasn't sure who'd been saved yet.
"We left London in a group of nine or 10 with Sophia — all employees and collaborators of our software company," she explained.
We were all guests of our boss, a good person, extraordinary, who they may not yet have saved."
According to local Italian media, the body of one individual - believed to be the yacht's on-board chef - was found near the shipwreck.
Topics: News, Parenting, UK News, World News, Bayesian yacht
Rhianna Benson