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After tracking down everything from its battered motor to its broken toilet, French salvage crews are now on the hunt for the final fragment of the sunken £1.8m Pershing yacht – and the man leading the effort says it might wash ashore just in time for his birthday.
The luxury ship – a 62ft P6T2 motor cruiser – was submerged after colliding with a metal buoy back in November while on its way to Guernsey.
Pictured: A collision with the Raudiere Buoy caused the luxury yacht to sink before breaking up at the bottom of the sea. Pieces then began to wash up in France. (CERES)
A 30m barge and 20-man rescue team from Antwerp, Belgium were sent over around a month later to recover the wreck, but it had already broken up by this point, believed to be the result of stormy weather.
By New Year, large chunks of the expensive vessel started sweeping up on French shores.
The break-up caused concern amongst French harbour authorities and mariners that pieces of the wreckage could cause a safety hazard.
Video: Part of the salvage mission in the area of Dielette, France. (CERES)
Frenchman Bertrand Sciboz and his CERES salvage team were tasked with the recovery process.
Since then, they’ve documented and ‘rescued’ dozens of pieces of Pershing, which is working its way around the Northern French coast.
While they’ve now taken care of fragments, motor parts and even spotted the yacht’s toilet, they say the final piece - the yacht's stern - is proving rather tricky.
Pictured: Some of the more unusual finds in the hunt for all of Pershing's floating parts. (CERES)
The 5m x 7m chunk washed up on the coast, a few miles from the CERES base in Montfarville, Normandy.
“It was certainly disappointed not to be salvaged by Ceres and so ended up finding us!” Bertrand told Express.
By the time the team went to dive, however, it had already left with the current.
Pictured: A map of the yacht pieces' route around the French coast. (CERES)
But there’s hope yet. The last piece is expected in the Port of St Vaast on February 12 – Bertrand’s birthday.
CERES was founded in 1994. Since then, they've gone on to salvage over 40 ships and recover 62 anchors, winning several awards along the way.
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