""By the end, I was just wondering how I would prefer to die."
After 35 hours stuck in a dark air pocket inside an overturned boat, Lucianna Galetta's voice falters as she recollects her harrowing experience.
A video briefly filmed using her phone's light, now shared with the BBC, reveals the space where she feared her life might end - beset by rising sea water and debris hindering her escape.
Lucianna was one of the last 35 survivors rescued from the wreck of the Sea Story, an Egyptian dive vessel that sank in the Red Sea on November 25 last year. Up to 11 individuals perished or remain missing, including Britons Jenny Cawson and Tarig Sinada from Devon.
Initially attributed by Egyptian authorities to a colossal wave up to 4 meters (13 feet) high, the BBC has conversed with 11 survivors of the Sea Story, who contest this claim. A prominent oceanographer supported their doubts, revealing that weather data indicates a wave could not have caused the disaster, attributing it instead to crew mistakes and boat deficiencies.
In addition to recounting the terror of being trapped in a swiftly sinking vessel, survivors accuse Dive Pro Liveaboard, the boat's operator, of various safety lapses. They also criticize the delayed response by Egyptian authorities, potentially contributing to loss of life. Despite reaching out to Dive Pro Liveaboard in Hurghada and the Egyptian government, responses have not been forthcoming.
For the first time, the firsthand account emerges of how the Sea Story foundered, narrated by those who escaped death.
The luxury dive vessel departed Port Ghaleb on Egypt's Red Sea Coast on November 24. Aboard were 31 international guests, mostly seasoned divers, three dive guides, and 12 Egyptian crew members. On a six-day excursion, their first stop was Sataya Reef, a renowned diving spot.
Lucianna, speaking from her residence in Belgium, initially viewed the Sea Story positively. "It looked like a really nice boat, very big, very clean," she remarks.
Due to a last-minute transfer from another well-reviewed boat and some confusion over destinations, several guests felt disappointed despite being informed they were receiving an "upgrade."
Though the night was turbulent, experienced sailors among the survivors noted the boat's instability exceeded expectations.
Moments before capsizing, a small inflatable boat slid overboard. A passenger's footage depicting the crew struggling to retrieve it portrays conditions deemed ordinary by an oceanographer, corresponding to 1.5-meter (5-feet) waves.
As Sarah Martin, an NHS doctor from Lancaster recounts, "the weather wasn't terrible, but the boat was unstable." Concerns raised with the crew went unheeded, amplifying the danger unbeknownst to passengers.
Sleep eluded Hissora Gonzalez, a Spanish diver, as the boat rocked violently through the night. When the vessel abruptly listed and plunged into darkness around 03:00, chaos ensued as people were jolted from their slumber. Blocked exits impeded escape, with one survivor recalling being trapped under shifting furniture on deck.
In the ensuing confusion, Hissora navigated the unfamiliar, askew environment looking for life jackets. Ahead of her, Cristhian Cercos' urgent call prompted her flight to safety. Their starboard cabin's perilous position evidently spared them - contrary to those on the port side devastated by the impact.
Having crawled through the overturned interior to an emergency exit, Sarah and her companion Natalia braved the treacherous journey towards the bow with a group of fellow survivors. An arduous ascent along slippery, obstructed passageways culminated in a desperate scramble to reach the top deck.
The inevitability of abandoning ship dawned on those who managed to breach the deck, leaping into the water as the vessel rapidly sank. Amidst the chaos, disoriented passengers grappled with malfunctioning life jackets as they awaited rescue.
The subsequent account reveals a distressing narrative of survival within the forlorn confines of the sinking Sea Story. Engulfed by darkness and despair, those marooned in the engulfing vessel clung to dwindling hope.
Dive guide Youssef's resolve to swim to safety was dissuaded by Lucianna and Christophe, whose ordeal lingered in the bowels of the ship, their survival teetering on the verge of oblivion.
A glimmer of hope pierced the desolation, heralding the arrival of a courageous Egyptian diver who ventured into the sunken hull to extract the trapped survivors. Lucianna's relief upon liberation renders the unfathomable ordeal into a fleeting memory.
The survivors' testimonies unveil a tale of resilience amidst tragedy, underscoring systemic safety flaws aboard the ill-fated Sea Story. The quest for answers looms large, tethered to the shadows of lives lost and futures forever altered by one catastrophic voyage.""