Safety Issues Plague Red Sea Liveaboards

We've reported at length on liveaboard disasters worldwide, noting that in the last five years, there have been at least 13 notable disasters in the Red Sea, with an equal number of fatalities.

A preponderance of divers who visit the Red Sea come from Europe, which prompted the German media--Stern magazine and broadcaster RTL--to investigate by sending reporters posing as divers to Egypt. What they found is shocking.

Their joint undercover investigation into the sinking of the liveaboard Sea Story in November 2024--a disaster that killed at least 11 people--revealed a chain of failures by the captain, operator, and authorities. (See The Surge in Liveaboard Disasters--an Undercurrent supplement.) These undercover reporters joined 17 different liveaboard vessels from three Egyptian ports as passengers, and their findings were damning, matching those of the Maritime International Survey and the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB). All the vessels had serious safety deficiencies.

• * Life jackets were often unsuitable; life rafts were inadequate.
• * Many lower decks lacked proper bulkheads; some vessels had missing or inaccessible emergency exits.
• * Navigation and communication equipment were missing on some boats.
• * Unsafe practices, such as smoking in the engine room while the diesel engine was running, were observed.

Matching the findings of Maritime Survey International and the MAIB, the Stern and RTL investigation raised urgent questions for Egyptian regulators:

• * Why have licensing and vessel classification rules been ignored?
• * What inspections--if any--did the Sea Story pass before departure?
• * Were official weather advisories ignored?
• * What mechanisms ensure safety compliance for operators?

The conclusion reached by the investigators was that until these questions are answered and meaningful reforms are made, divers and tourists face unacceptable risks in Egyptian waters. Dive from a Red Sea boat at your own risk.