Fisherman Killed as Maltese-Flagged Yacht Strikes Boat in Gulf of Kenchreae

A Greek fisherman was killed and a second man left unconscious with fractures on Saturday night after a large Malta-flagged motor yacht struck their small vessel in the Gulf of Kenchreae near Isthmia, at the southern approach to the Corinth Canal.

The collision occurred in the early hours of 6 September. The motor yacht Barents, estimated at around 50 metres in length, hit the fishing boat in darkness. The impact overturned the smaller vessel. Emergency services pulled both men from the water, but one could not be revived. The survivor was taken to hospital in serious condition with bone fractures and was reported unconscious on admission.

Greek coast guard officers boarded the Barents and detained the yacht's captain. Authorities handed the captain to a local prosecutor, who opened a formal investigation. The inquiry will examine vessel speed, watch-keeping practices, and whether any distress signals were broadcast before or during the incident.

The Gulf of Kenchreae sits immediately south of the canal's eastern mouth. The Corinth Canal, 6.3 kilometres long and barely 24 metres wide, funnels traffic between the Saronic Gulf and the Gulf of Corinth. The surrounding waters are busy with charter yachts and small commercial vessels throughout the summer, and night transits in the area are common during the peak season.

MarineRadar vessel tracking data showed a 1.5× rise in search activity across the Greek coast over the 48 hours preceding the incident, with the Gulf of Corinth and Saronic approaches among the more active search zones. The Barents was not visible on publicly accessible AIS tracking at the time of writing.