A tragic incident unfolded as a young British head chef met his untimely death by drowning in a French port after a night out with colleagues on a superyacht, as revealed in an inquest. The deceased, Flinn Sessions, a 22-year-old from Wimborne, Dorset, had been employed on the Atlantico for a period of two months when the vessel was docked at La Ciotat, near Marseille, on June 9, 2023.
During the inquest at Bournemouth Coroner’s Court, details emerged that Flinn had been socializing with crew members and fellow yacht workers, frequenting several bars where he was observed consuming beers and shots before the fatal incident. Coroner Brendan Allen disclosed that Flinn’s companions had intervened at one point, requesting the waiter to withhold further alcohol service to him.
CCTV footage captured Flinn in the early hours, leaning against a bollard on the quayside before plunging into the water and swimming towards the yacht’s rear. Tragically, Flinn was discovered lifeless in the water that morning, with post-mortem examinations conducted in France and the UK confirming his cause of death as drowning.
In a concluding statement, Coroner Allen ruled the death as accidental, citing the excessive alcohol consumption during socializing as a contributing factor. The CCTV evidence indicated Flinn was alone during the fall, showed no signs of ill health, and implied that the incident was not intentional, leading to the official verdict of accidental death.