Ross McGrath and and Hossam Helmy have been close friends for over 20 years. Since they met, they share the same passion for diving and exploring the Southern Red Sea on land and underwater.
The team was completed by Karen van Opstal and they all shared the vision for the now existing concept of Red Sea Diving Safari. Ross is one of the pioneers of the South and played a great role in building Red Sea Diving Safari. Together, they discovered the area of the Brothers Islands, which until that time had been quite unknown.
They also organised camping trips where they drove along the uninhabited Red Sea coastline with a Jeep, tents, a gas cooker and dive equipment and just a handful of guests, eventually settling at what we now know as Marsa Shagra Village. They opened Nakari Village and Pioneer Divers together which Ross ran until the year 2000 when he was sent to the most southern dive area of Egypt, Wadi Lahami. After diving every single reef in the area for 4 months, he established Wadi Lahami Diving Village where during his long career he educated many, from diving and non-diving guests alike to staff at all levels. Through his passion for the place itself, he created a cozy atmosphere in the village and guests came from near and far to enjoy the world class diving available on its doorstep. This, accompanied by his honest and whole-hearten character gave the place a very authentic and personal touch. Hossam Helmy could not have imagined a better person for this project than Ross and he is thankful for everything he has done for Wadi Lahami, Red Sea Diving Safari and himself.
Our dear friend Ross has made the decision to step down from his position as the Village Manager of Wadi Lahami, to be able to enjoy it as his home rather than his work. Also, over the past years, Ross has developed a passion for kite surfing which led him to upgrade our kite surf station in Wadi Lahami and to build his own bar called "The Yellow Penguin".
Ross will continue to take care of these two facilities in Wadi Lahami.
We will always appreciate the huge effort that Ross has dedicated to Red Sea Diving Safari over the years.
We would also like to take this opportunity to inform you about the new management of Wadi Lahami:
Hossam Abdelaziz as Village Manager – Hossam has been working at RSDS for 6 years, he has been the base leader in Wadi Lahami for the past 3 years. He has all the needed experience and motivation to manage the village operation in Wadi Lahami. He is also IDC Staff Instructor and as such he will be able to take care about the guests’ needs in terms of diving education.
Loay Salah as Base Leader – Loay has been working as a dive guide in Wadi Lahami since 2007 and has acted as base leader in the diving department of Wadi Lahami for the past 3 years. He will be assisting Hossam in the diving operation and is also PADI Instructor.
George Nady in the Front Office – George has been working in the Reception in Shagra from 2009 to 2011 and has been taking care of the reception in Wadi Lahami for the last 2.5 years and will be responsible for guest's check-in/ -out, reservation and the needs of the guests on side.
This young, motivated team, Red Sea Diving Safari and Hossam Helmy looking forward to see their first months of teamwork in this new constellation. We will give them all the support they need for this new challenge.
