Captain Lee Rosbach Shares Update on His Health, Life After Below Deck and His Return to TV

Captain Lee Rosbach has officially set sail on the next chapter of his life.

After Below Deck's longtime captain left the Bravo series last year after 10 seasons amid a nerve problem that required medical attention, the 74-year-old shared an update on his health post-leg surgery.

"I'm doing great," Lee exclusively told E! News ahead of the premiere of his new Oxygen series Deadly Waters With Captain Lee. "I've been going to the gym every day. I still have a slight limp, but other than that I don't have to use a cane or any crutches or anything like, which I'm grateful. I'm happy to be healthy again."

While Lee hasn't necessarily been keeping up with Below Deck's ongoing 11th season, he has heard about his successor Captain Kerry Titheradge's no-nonsense leadership style amid the latest crew drama.

"I've caught parts of it and I've read a lot about it," he shared, "it seems that Kerry's got his hands full. I think they fired four people this year. That's a lot. I thought I was good at firing people."

And Bravo fans who miss seeing Lee on Below Deck are in for a treat. He's hosting a brand new Oxygen true crime series Deadly Waters With Captain Lee, which highlights the most mysterious crimes—and even real-life murders—that happened at sea.

The new project is one of the reasons Lee hasn't had much free time to keep in touch with his former St. David yachties.

"I've been doing a lot of work with this new show and that's occupied a lot of my time and thought process," he explained, "because it's it is so totally different from Below Deck. We have people that get killed. Even though on Below Deck I may have felt like I wanted to kill somebody at one time or another, it didn't actually ever happen. Here we're in a little bit more of a serious nature and it affects people's lives and people do lose their lives."

"It's amazing how much the ocean plays in catching these perpetrators," Lee continued. "When I watched the first episode, I thought, 'What are they thinking?!'"

See Capt. Lee return to the sea when Deadly Waters with Captain Lee premieres Saturday, June 1, at 9 p.m. on Oxygen. And keep reading to look back at the most dramatic crew firings in Below Deck history.

If there's one thing to learn from Camille Lamb's Below Deck firing, it's to not slack off on the job. That's exactly why the season 10 stew was let go by substitute Captain Sandy Yawn, as Chief Stew Fraser Olender continued to criticize Camille's behavior on board.

From being caught drinking while preparing for a new charter to partying at late hours and more, Fraser informed Captain Sandy that he had reached his "last straw."

"She's the common denominator in all of this," said Captain Sandy. "Great girl, great personality, but at the same time, we have to do what's best for the boat."

Below Deck Adventure's Kyle Dickard was let go just three episodes into the reality franchise's latest series—which premiered in November 2022. After picking fights with his fellow deckhand Nathan Morley—as well as kissing crew mates in front of guests—Kyle was offered by Captain Kerry Titheradge the opportunity to resign so that his firing would not end up on his personal record.

Kyle took the Captain up on his offer and left the boat after just one charter.

Captain Sandy let bosun Raygan Tyler go during season seven of Below Deck Mediterranean, not only for causing the boat to take a small hit while docking, but also for not stepping up to the plate as a leader.

But Captain Sandy didn't want her firing to discourage the bosun, as she told Raygan, "If I had the time and I wasn't running a boat this size, I would train you. I would teach you."

In addition to onboard romances and failing to follow directions, one of the biggest reasons behind stew Elizabeth Frankini's Below Deck firing was her infamous laundry room accident, during which made a toxic mess when combining bleach and laundry soap.

"Unfortunately, I didn't know that was so toxic and I feel so bad about it," she told E! News of the incident in December 2020. "You know, I do feel really bad, especially 'cause Francesca [Rubi] did say, 'Take it outside.'"

The bosun and stew were both fired by Captain Jason Chambers for inappropriate behavior after a night of partying with their fellow yachties.

Luke Jones was let go after getting into Stew Margot Sisson's bed naked while she was drunk and unconscious. Laura Bileskaine also made unwanted advances on Deckhand Adam Kodra despite him telling her he was not interested in hooking up.

Jason made it known that consent was a must, and sent both crewmembers packing.

Tensions between stew Lexi Wilson and Chef Mathew Shea came to a head during an explosive dinner fight on season six of Below Deck Mediterranean, during which Lexi told Matt that his parents "should've aborted you." That was the last straw for Captain Sandy, who fired her not long after the incident.

Deckhand Tom Pearson said "bon voyage" to Below Deck Sailing Yacht after getting let go by Captain Glenn Shephard. Tom hit his last strike with the Captain after failing to report that the boat's anchor was dragging during heavy winds one night, causing a potential safety risk for everyone on board.

"It had to be done. It was such a grievous thing that he dropped the ball there, he had to go, and we had to just be man down and live with it, you know?" Captain Glenn said of the decision on Watch What Happens Live. "So, obviously, you don't want to do that, but yeah, it had to happen."

Some people are picky eaters, but Below Deck Down Under's Ryan McKeown was quite the picky chef, as he would judge guests' food requests and fail to take criticism from Captain Jason Chambers, as well.

Perhaps Ryan's Below Deck exit is one of the franchise's most memorable, as he mooned Jason and viewers on his way off the boat.

Below Deck Down Under stew Magda Ziomek's firing was another case of slacking on the job. After constantly being on her phone texting or video chatting with her boyfriend, Chief Stew Aesha Scott decided to replace Magda before the end of the charter season.

Below Deck Mediterranean's Peter Hunziker was fired from the series in June 2020 after he shared an offensive post on social media.

"Peter Hunziker of Below Deck Mediterranean has been terminated for his racist post," Bravo wrote in a statement at the time. "Bravo and 51 Minds are editing the show to minimize his appearance for subsequent episodes."

Chief Stew Hannah Ferrier was let go by Captain Sandy on Below Deck Mediterranean after boson Malia White discovered her co-star possessed undeclared Valium and a vape pen, the former of which Hannah claimed was for her anxiety.

"If I could do it all over again, I would've just declared them as soon as I came on board," Hannah stated in an August 2020 interview with E! News. "It was definitely not something that was intentional. I wasn't trying to hide anything.

Below Deck Mediterranean's Delaney Evans left just as quickly as she arrived. After initially being brought on during season six to help out Chief Stew Katie Flood, Katie determined that Delaney was doing more harm than good, choosing to let her go after just one charter.

"I think she was overwhelmed with the situation, and I think that, you know, in her mind, the best solution to the situation was just to go back to what they had before," Delaney told Bravo Insider of Katie's decision. "I think she was just overwhelmed with everything that was going on and all the feedback she was getting."

Deckhand Shane Coopersmith was a bit in over his head on season eight of Below Deck, as he was let go for failing to know basic skills, reporting late for duty and taking naps on the job.

Chaos in the kitchen led to Captain Lee Rosbach letting Chef Leon Walker go on season three of Below Deck. After an oven fire broke out, Lee placed the blame on Chief Stew Kate Chastain but was ultimately the one sent home.

Like several of the franchise's stars, Below Deck's Chris Brown was fired during season five for failing to fully perform his duties. After being let go by Captain Lee, Chris shared some parting words as he left the boat, stating, "Who gives a s--t?"

Chef Mila Kolomeitseva was fired by Captain Sandy on season four of Below Deck Mediterranean after failing to use her cooking skills to produce top-quality food for guests—including some not-so-nice nachos.

"Of course it makes me feel awful," Mila said of her departure. "People like me who have big egos sometimes have to be put down to earth a little bit. But it makes me feel like I want to work even harder."

Sometimes people just don't work well together. That's exactly why Captain Lee fired Chandler Brooks during season six of Below Deck, telling the boson, "I don't think it's a good fit."

(E!, Oxygen and Bravo are all part of the NBCUniversal family)

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