Sir Philip Green’s super-yacht quarantined in Monaco over coronavirus outbreak
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The $150 million and 90-meter-long super-yacht Lionheart has been docked at Monaco’s Port Hercule for over a week. Two crew members tested positive for coronavirus.
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The impressive luxury vessel belongs to Sir Philip Green, British billionaire and owner of Topshop, and his wife Lady Tina Green, who is a Monaco resident. The Lionheart is the biggest yacht ever built by historic Italian yacht-maker Benetti and was bought by Sir Philip Green for an estimated 150 million dollars. The yacht has space for 16 crew members and can welcome up to 12 people.
At the time, the purchase of this yacht raised public concern in the United Kingdom. The supe-yacht was bought by Green one year after the British tycoon sold BHS clothing stores to a little-known investor for £1.
Philip Green’s retail business has been hard-hit by the pandemic and in April it was announced that he had taken government money to pay for staff during the Coronavirus lockdown. Over the last 4 years, his wealth has drastically diminished. Forbes estimates that from $5,9 billion in 2016, Philip and Tina Green are now worth a “mere” $2,2 billion.
Coronavirus outbreak on board
“After maintenance in Italy, the boat returned to Monaco. We were meant to go on a cruise with my family. It was my responsibility to have the whole crew tested before leaving. We then discovered two cases — one asymptomatic and the other with a sore throat. The two have been confined to the cabin ever since,” Lady Tina Green told the local newspaper Monaco Matin. She added that everyone was well.
According to Monaco Matin, 14 boats have now been asked to quarantine by Monaco’s government since the start of the pandemic. Their status is indicated by a yellow flag hoisted on the mast. The Lionheart question should be solved quickly enough. According to local media, all of the new tests conducted on the yacht’s crew at the beginning of the week came back negative.