Unknown Sea Story lob sinks

[ijdod]

Dutch language newspaper article from two of the Belgian survivors rescued from inside the boat, including footage they made while stuck. Newspaper itself is close to tabloid however (being nice). Footage does show more room than Yacht Report mentioned, at least for these survivors.

Belgische drenkelingen filmden hoe ze 35 uur lang onder water overleefden: ‘Kijk, daar drijven zelfs sigaretten’

In een luchtzak van nauwelijks enkele kubieke meters groot overleefden de Belgische Christophe (37) en Lucianna (30) de scheepsramp in Egypte. Dat legden ze zelf vast in een onwaarschijnlijke video. Daarin tonen ze het eten dat ze bij elkaar konden sprokkelen. De golven slaan tegen hun kleine...

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One thing that comes to my mind, I see a lot of talk on various socials how Egypt has piss-poor safety standards, and corruption, and so on. I am sure that's all true... but just 5 years ago we learned this can happen in a rich modern country as well, for what's in the end essentially the same reasons.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

Dutch language newspaper article from two of the Belgian survivors rescued from inside the boat, including footage they made while stuck. Newspaper is close to tabloid however. Footage does show more room than Yacht Report mentioned, at least for these survivors.

Belgische drenkelingen filmden hoe ze 35 uur lang onder water overleefden: ‘Kijk, daar drijven zelfs sigaretten’

In een luchtzak van nauwelijks enkele kubieke meters groot overleefden de Belgische Christophe (37) en Lucianna (30) de scheepsramp in Egypte. Dat legden ze zelf vast in een onwaarschijnlijke video. Daarin tonen ze het eten dat ze bij elkaar konden sprokkelen. De golven slaan tegen hun kleine...

www.ad.nl

One thing that comes to my mind, I see a lot of talk on various socials how Egypt has piss-poor safety standards, and corruption, and so on. I am sure that's all true... but just 5 years ago we learned this can happen in a rich modern country as well, for what's in the end essentially the same reasons.

As they say, safety regulations are written in blood. I would opine that the difference is after Conception there was a lengthy and public investigation, extensive news reporting, legislative and regulatory proposals for reform, and a court prosecution. Hopefully that makes it a one-time incident, albeit a deadly one. Egyptian liveaboards on the other hand seem to be running for mayor of Amity Island when it comes to learning from accidents and making changes.

Something of a historical comparison - everyone knocks Titanic, but the fact was that safety-wise she was as safe or safer than a majority of passenger liners on the water at the time and fully in compliance with existing regulations. The allision with the iceberg was a combination of a stupid move by her captain (steaming at 20-plus knots into what turned out to be a dense ice field on a flat calm moonless night) and just plain unlucky timing resulting in an extent of damage the designers hadn't anticipated (she would have survived plowing straight into the berg and arguably turned just seconds too late to avoid it). After that disaster, there were public inquiries and a revision of standards for ice reporting, watertight integrity, and lifeboat capacity. I was recently listening to a naval historian discussing the loss of Titanic's redesigned sister Britannic to a mine in WWI; while unfortunately the damage overcame the ship's watertight integrity improvements her crew managed to get 35 lifeboats successfully launched (not counting the two that were launched too early and got drawn into the props, accounting for all 30 fatalities out of a total 1,066 persons aboard) in less time than it took Titanic to get 20 boats away (counting some that were washed off the boat deck as she sank).

 

[ijdod]

@HalcyonDaze I'm fully aware of how regulations came to be. I'm also sure that those expensive lessons will be far more likely to result in meaningful changes in rich modern countries. My point wasnt that there isn't or shouldn't be any blame towards Egyptian operators, authorities and regulations, far from it, it's just that I sense some Western arrogance (or whatever you want to call it) in some of those posts.

 

[BoltSnap]

I have a closer connection to Egyptian culture, perhaps more than most here on SB. While Egyptians can sometimes be lax about safety and quality, often relying on "God's protection" as a way to avoid responsibility, the current situation is excessively alarming. It's surprising that the Egyptian government, despite its authoritative stance, hasn't addressed this issue. Tourism is crucial to Egypt's economy, and the government is usually vigilant about protecting their resources and reputation, sometimes in a heavy-handed manner. Given Egypt's urgent need for foreign currency, one would expect the authorities to act swiftly and decisively, yet this doesn't seem to be happening.

 

[Alekseolsen]

OK, it's been over 4 days since the Sea Story sank. Sadly, it appears the 7 missing are gone. Why haven't we heard anything from any of the survivors? I have a guess.

I've spoken with one of the survivors today.

While I'm not posting any of our chat online - he has not been asked to or doesn't seem to care about any sort of request to "stay silent"

 

[Phil111]

I have a closer connection to Egyptian culture, perhaps more than most here on SB. While Egyptians can sometimes be lax about safety and quality, often relying on "God's protection" as a way to avoid responsibility, the current situation is excessively alarming. It's surprising that the Egyptian government, despite its authoritative stance, hasn't addressed this issue. Tourism is crucial to Egypt's economy, and the government is usually vigilant about protecting their resources and reputation, sometimes in a heavy-handed manner. Given Egypt's urgent need for foreign currency, one would expect the authorities to act swiftly and decisively, yet this doesn't seem to be happening.

Perhaps changes will be made.

Perhaps nothing will change.

Whatever happens is because of Allah's will.

 

[BoltSnap]

Whatever happens is because of Allah's will.

This is the most abused saying in our part of the world. Using "Allah" as an excuse to escape responsibility and/or to take proper action. Just sit on our assses and do nothing. This has nothing to do with Islam's teachings.

 

[ivy202]

I've spoken with one of the survivors today.

While I'm not posting any of our chat online - he has not been asked to or doesn't seem to care about any sort of request to "stay silent"

Hi, please pass on to your friend - and to all of the survivors, and families of the deceased of this tragedy on the Sea Story - as a survivor of the 2019 Red Sea Aggressor I (aka MV Suzana) boat fire, I highly recommend EMDR therapy...it helped me a lot.... and I'm diving again off LOBs ...above deck

 

[HalcyonDaze]

I have a closer connection to Egyptian culture, perhaps more than most here on SB. While Egyptians can sometimes be lax about safety and quality, often relying on "God's protection" as a way to avoid responsibility, the current situation is excessively alarming. It's surprising that the Egyptian government, despite its authoritative stance, hasn't addressed this issue. Tourism is crucial to Egypt's economy, and the government is usually vigilant about protecting their resources and reputation, sometimes in a heavy-handed manner. Given Egypt's urgent need for foreign currency, one would expect the authorities to act swiftly and decisively, yet this doesn't seem to be happening.

Well, one of the problems common in authoritarian regimes is that it's a lot easier to just shove problems under the rug. I'd be curious to know if the recent spate of accidents has impacted liveaboard revenue; if the money isn't drying up then "do nothing" might be the default option.

 

[ivy202]

I suppose the question is that if you're on the boat, start kicking the tires so to speak and feel unsafe, what then? I don't really see an operator that allows their vessels to run in unsafe condition cheerfully agreeing to a refund if you decide to walk off at the dock (assuming they do the brief before casting off).

Personally, I'd rather not put myself into that situation; a liveaboard trip (or generally any overseas dive trip) is a significant investment for me and I'm inclined to check things before I book so as not to flush money and time down the drain. Unless I get a personal recommendation for a good operator in the Red Sea that isn't cutting corners, it's off my list for the foreseeable future. The only way things are going to change is if there's a clear financial incentive (for the operators and the government) to run safely.

That's the problem, it's not like you can get off and get a refund. Plus, even if their website is full of safety features and/or the boat's 'luxury' and costs a lot for the trip (like the Red Sea Aggressor - a USA-based company rubber stamping a death-trap in a foreign country), it doesn't mean those installed systems work (fire alarms didn't go off during 2019 fire) or the crew is performing them (no night watch when 2019 fire broke out).... or that the crew doesn't have their mattresses pushed up against the emergency escape hatch - which was exactly the case in the 2019 fire (and as others have posted here). All those things and more were advertised and then again promised during our day 1 briefing. We felt safe...we were wrong...

this is incredibly scary and frustrating to hear about year after year... Until we stop booking (especially below deck), they'll keep taking our money and setting sail with us on these death traps. ...stay safe!

my thoughts about LOB safety, NTSB findings from my 2023 post after the MV Hurricane fire:

Post in thread 'This morning in Egypt ...'

Jun 14, 2023

First – to the MV Hurricane liveaboard survivors and families of the deceased… as one of the survivors from the 2019 Red Sea Aggressor I (aka MV Suzana) boat fire, my deepest sympathies for what you are going through. I highly recommend EMDR therapy, it helped me a lot with my PTSD after our 2019 horror.

Second – hi divers! You all have a lot of great points regarding the recurring fire/safety hazards we face on liveaboards (especially repeat incidents in the Red Sea) and the problems with bureaucracy; lack of tracking accountably, affordability, personal responsibility by the...

• ivy202

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