The anchor chain of 303-foot mega-yacht, the Tatoosh, belonging to Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has been blamed for destroying a large area of protected coral reef in the Cayman Islands.
It destroyed almost 14,000 square foot, or about 80 per cent, of reef in a protected area in the West Bay area of the Cayman Islands, according to the islands' Department of Environment (DoE).
Allen's Seattle-based Vulcan Inc organisation, which manages his fortune, said on Wednesday that the M/V Tatoosh was moored on January 14 in a "position explicitly directed" by the local port authority and that his team was co-operating with the investigation.
CNN reported that Mr Allen could face a maximum fine of roughly $US600,000, not counting civil damages.
The Cayman News Service reported that divers surveyed the damage last week and that the environment department expects to issue its investigative findings next week.
Tatoosh is the 49th-largest yacht in the world, according to BoatInternational.com, and has two helipads and a crew of 30. In December, a much larger ship, the Pullmantur cruise liner Zenith, wrecked another Grand Cayman reef — also protected, and located in a marine park — with its anchor chain.