KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — The captain of a a sailboat that sank near Sicily and left one person dead and six people missing at sea yesterday said the crew did not see the storm that caused the incident until it was too late.

Speaking from a hospital, James Calfield, 51, said he had no information about the storm until it was upon his yacht, the British-flagged "Bayesian”.

"We didn't see it coming,’ he was quoted as saying by La Repubblica.

Separately, the wife of missing British tycoon Michael Lynch said they had awoken to the storm after the Bayesian began listing.

Angela Bacares said they had not realised the severity of the storm until the sailboat with 22 people onboard started to tilt.

Authorities have not identified the person killed in the incident, but previous reports said Lynch, his daughter, and Morgan Stanley International Jonathan Bloomer were among those missing.