Below Deck star Captain Lee left the show in last week’s episode (Picture: Bravo)
Captain Lee Rosbach left his Below Deck castmates, and viewers at home, sobbing when he announced his exit from the show in last week’s episode.
The 73-year-old had previously undergone back surgery and was struggling with his recovery while on board, leaving him with a tough decision to make.
In the latest instalment, he welcomed Captain Sandy Yawn into the wheelhouse as his replacement, thanking her for making down on ‘such short notice’.
Sandy, who helms the Below Deck Mediterranean spin-off, is the first Captain to switch franchises in the program’s nine-year history.
‘Thanks for coming,’ he said as they shared a hug. ‘I appreciate you coming on such short notice.
‘I’ll do my best to get back as quickly as I can to relieve you.’
Captain Sandy Yawn stepped up as his replacement (Picture: Bravo)
Before he made his way off the boat, he vowed that he would be returning before the charter season ended, as the 57-year-old urged him to ‘go bet better’.
‘Captain Lee and I go way back,’ she told the camera. ‘So when I heard about Captain Lee’s situation, I felt terrible. Who wants to leave because you can’t physically do it?
‘It’s never easy taking over for another Captain.
‘My hope is that Captain Lee feels supported. I’m here to take care of his boat and his crew until he gets back.’
Captain Lee vowed that he would be returning (Picture: Bravo)
Captain Sandy has been in the wheelhouse since season two of Below Deck Med, and recently docked the seventh series of the spin-off.
Her fellow yachtie couldn’t be more grateful that she stepped in to help him, telling People Magazine: ‘She really did me a solid’.
‘That’s a very difficult situation that I put her in,’ Captain Lee continued. ‘You’re taking over somebody else’s boat and somebody’s else’s crew.
‘That’s hard enough as it is – now add on top of it the fact that you’re also filming a TV show and you’ve got me over here saying, “By the way, I may or may not be back. It’s open-ended, but I’ll do my best!” I recognize how hard that is.
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‘The fact that she was willing to jump in; that she sucked it up and came on board and did what I asked her to do? I owe her big time for that.
‘For her to step forward and take it on says a lot about her.’
Below Deck airs on Bravo on Mondays and is available to stream on hayu in the UK on the same day.
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He promised to be back.
