The Italian Coast Guard deployed some of its assets to render assistance to a pleasure craft that had caught fire 96 kilometres off Sardinia on Tuesday, August 25.
The incident occurred at around 06:00 local time while the 47-metre yacht was sailing from Naples to Porto Cervo in Sassari province.
The distressed vessel was already engulfed in flames and smoke by the time two coast guard patrol boats and a helicopter arrived at the scene.
All 17 people who were on board the yacht were found floating in a life raft and were picked up by the responding coast guard boat and helicopter crews. No injuries have been reported.
The yacht's passengers included eight Kazakh nationals who were in Italy on holiday.
The coast guard said an investigation has been launched to identify the cause of the fire on the yacht, which sank later in the day on Tuesday.