Naval collision off Cannes: the body found at sea is that of the missing young man

The body found at sea on August 29 off the coast of Cannes near Mandelieu-la-Napoule has been identified. The Marseille prosecutor’s office confirmed yesterday evening that it was the 22-year-old young man who had been missing since the collision between two boats that occurred on August 16. The accident resulted in ten injured, including four seriously.

On August 16, two boats collided in the Gulf of La Napoule, off the coast of Cannes, in the Alpes-Maritimes. A 22-year-old young man, present among the passengers, had been missing since.

A body had been recovered on August 29 in the same area following a report while the search had been stopped. The Marseille prosecutor’s office has now confirmed that the identification establishes that it is indeed the man who had been sought since the accident.

The collision occurred around 10:40 p.m. between a Pardo 38 yacht of 12 meters, with ten passengers and a skipper on board, and a semi-rigid boat of Tempest type of seven meters, which was carrying nine passengers and a skipper.

The accident resulted in ten injured, including four seriously. Several victims were treated following the collision, while the search continued to find the missing passenger.

An investigation still ongoing into the circumstances of the collision

The initial information provided by the Marseille prosecutor’s office indicates a difference in speed between the two vessels. The Pardo 38 was traveling at “normal speed”, while that of the semi-rigid was “high.” Initial findings also revealed a failure to comply with maritime right-of-way rules by the semi-rigid.

The captain of the semi-rigid was under the influence of neither alcohol nor narcotic substances at the time of the incident.

A flagrante delicto investigation had initially been opened by the Grasse prosecutor’s office. Investigations had been jointly assigned to the Maritime Police and the naval brigade of Antibes before being taken over, as of August 17, 2026, by the Maritime Court of Marseille.

The investigation also covers international rules designed to prevent collisions at sea. The collision notably involves the privilege rules provided for by the Colreg convention, which govern priorities and conduct to be adopted between different vessels.

The identification of the body found on August 29 thus ends the search undertaken since the August 16 collision. Judicial investigations continue in order to determine precisely the circumstances of the accident that occurred off Mandelieu-la-Napoule.