Rome, Aug 22 (IANS): Five bodies were recovered from the hull of the stricken Bayesian yacht that sank in a freak storm, though searches are ongoing with one last passenger unaccounted for.

Hindered by severe weather and the unusual positioning of the sunken yacht, a team of divers working in 12-minute shifts, with the help of a remote-controlled undersea search robot, had trouble accessing the inside of the ship before Wednesday. That was when divers first found two bodies and then, later, two more, and according to news reports, a fifth body later in the day, reports Xinhua news agency.

The 56-meter ship was anchored near the shore of Porticello on the southern Italian island of Sicily when it was hit by a severe storm on Monday.

Authorities said a powerful waterspout snapped the ship's main mast and flipped the yacht before it quickly sank beneath the waves.

Fifteen of the 22 passengers and crew members were immediately rescued, with eight of them rushed to local hospitals. The body of one crew member was quickly found near the spot where the boat went down.