The man who used to helm the US yacht which crashed, claiming the lives of two Cork sailors last weekend, has given a further insight into the sequence of events that led up to the tragedy.

The US coastguard has called off its search for two Cork men blown from their racing yacht by waves off the California coast, saying the “window of survivability had passed”.

Two Irishmen are among four sailors still missing in the Pacific Ocean after their yacht was thrown onto rocks during a yacht race in San Francisco on Saturday.