Fatal sinking of the 'Sea Story': The evidence Egypt is withholding
Egyptian authorities are withholding evidence of serious safety problems that led to the fatal accident involving the tourist ship 'Sea Story'. Last november, eleven tourists and crew members died in the accident involving the luxury yacht on the Red Sea, and the case made headlines around the world for days. Now, German magazine stern and broadcaster RTL are reporting that the captain, operator, and authorities failed in their duties – citing investigation files from Egyptian prosecutors. According to the report, the ship also had structural stability deficiencies.
The Hamburg public prosecutor's office is investigating the case on suspicion of negligent homicide. However, Egypt is revealing little information, according to an internal memo from investigators at the federal criminal police Bundeskriminalamt cited by stern and RTL.
Death at Sea Report reveals alarming safety deficiencies on Egypt's tourist boats
The tourist yacht capsized and sank on November 25, 2024, with 30 divers and 15 crew members on board. Shortly after the accident, Amr Hanafy, governor of the Red Sea region, said that a giant wave had struck the ship and caused it to capsize.
According to research by stern and RTL, weather service data show that the waves in the area where the 'Sea Story' capsized were about two meters high at the time of the accident.
In addition, according to the public prosecutor's office in Hurghada, the ship should not have been allowed to set sail at all. The captain did not have the mandatory operating license to steer a vessel like the 'Sea Story'. According to investigators, the operating company Dive Pro, based in Hurghada, did not have a license for the ship to operate on the high seas. Military forces based at the port presumably could have had this information yet nevertheless approved the ship's departure.
Several state authorities, Governor Hanafy, and the operating company Dive Pro left extensive questions unanswered.
Professor Stefan Krüger from the Institute for Ship Safety at the Technical University of Hamburg evaluated the circumstances investigated and said: "It is a miracle that not far more people died in the accident."
It was the second fatal accident involving the operating company Dive Pro within just a few months.
The Red Sea, a popular travel destination for European tourists, has experienced a series of fatal diving tour accidents for some time. In recent years, dozens of ships like the 'Sea Story' have run aground, burned out, or sunk worldwide. More than half of them off the coast of Egypt.
In search of the causes, a team of reporters from German stern magazine and broadcaster RTL spent many months investigating. Three reporters went undercover in the country, using disguised identities. This gave them access to locations secured by soldiers, to insiders, and to around 600 pages of investigation files on the 'Sea Story' case, which the authorities guard like a kind of state secret.
Among the eleven fatalities of the 'Sea Story' accident were three Germans, two Britons, two Poles, one Slovak, and three Egyptians.
The entire team: Manuel Heckmair, Michelle Janetschek, Tina Kaiser, Tim Kickbusch, Marc Neller, Romeo Russo, Katharina Schultz, Johanna Wagner. Verification: Moritz Dickentmann
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