Captain Sandra “Sandy” Yawn has given Below Deck viewers some of the most memorable franchise moments. The 59-year-old reality star wowed her fans with her captaincy in Below Deck Mediterranean season 2. She replaced season 1’s captain, Mark Howard, and became a regular on the series. Captain Sandy grew up in a coastal region, which explains her love for the sea. She graduated from Brandon High School in Hillsborough County and later completed her maritime degree. The famous captain joined the reality TV series in 2017 and has since appeared on different Bravo shows.
Captain Sandy doesn’t drink, and there’s an interesting story behind it. The now-leader was once misguided. She got into drugs and alcohol at a young age, which led to numerous arrests and life-threatening incidents. Fortunately, Captain Sandy decided to turn her life around soon after. She quit her bad habits and recently celebrated 34 years of sobriety. Like her crew members, Captain Sandy has a beautiful romantic life. She’s in love with another woman, Leah Shafe, whom she met on Facebook. Despite the 10-year age gap, the two ladies have excellent chemistry.
8 When Captain Sandy Replaced Captain Lee Temporarily
Below Deck Season 10
Captain Sandy has been part of many surprising and entertaining Below Deck moments over the last eight years. In Below Deck season 10, she boarded St. David in the absence of captain Lee Rosbach. Sandy joined the crew after her 74-year-old co-star had to take a break due to health issues. Not only did she handle the charters well, but she also single-handedly saved the season by managing a new team on short notice. Her surprise entry on the main Below Deck show will always be unforgettable.
7 When Captain Sandy Comforted Chef Dave During A Panic Attack
Below Deck Med Season 7
Another one of Captain Sandy’s heroic moments came in Below Deck Mediterranean season 7. During the season, chef David “Dave” White shared some drunk texts with chief stew Natasha “Tasha” Webb. He was pretty aggressive in the messages and could’ve lost his job because of them. However, Captain Sandy didn’t fire him for it. Instead, she understood her chef’s alcohol problems and supported him while he was going through overwhelming anxiety. Chef Dave talked about his experience with Captain Sandy in a later interview. He said, “she really f***ing supported me. And I’ll never forget that.”
6 Captain Sandy Firing Chef Kiko
Below Deck Med Season 5
In Below Deck Mediterranean season 5, captain Sandy shared an unforgettable moment with former chef Hindrigo “Kiko” Lorran. The drama began when the young chef joined the crew and showed signs that he wasn’t ready to be in the yacht’s galley. As expected, Captain Sandy wasn’t impressed by his lack of skills and realized he’d mess things up for the entire crew if she didn’t act. Therefore, she fired Kiko for his inexperience. The whole incident occurred amid a charter’s dinner service, making it an explosively shocking moment.
5 Captain Sandy Losing Her Cool With Hannah
Below Deck Med Season 3
Hannah Ferrier has always been an excellent team leader and chief stew. However, she once messed up during Below Deck Mediterranean season 3. In one of the episodes, Hannah jumped out of the ship and disappears for over five hours without informing Captain Sandy. As expected, things didn’t go well after she returned to the yacht. Captain Sandy immediately called Hannah out and gave her a piece of her mind. She said (via Bravo), “Hannah, you actually think what you did is okay. That’s the most disturbing part for me.” The captain even added that she “won’t work” with Hannah after that.
4 Captain Sandy Finally Let Chef Mila Go
Below Deck Med Season 4
While Captain Sandy didn’t fire Hannah and worked with her for many seasons after that, she did let chef Mila Kolomeitseva go. In Below Deck Mediterranean season 4, viewers witnessed one of the strangest firings of the franchise. The drama began when chef Mila joined the crew and built a controversial image due to her homophobic comments. From her terrible culinary performance to her attitude, she was a red flag that Captain Sandy couldn’t fix. During episode 5, Sandy unceremoniously fired Mila for her behavior. She said, “you can’t do the job you said you could,” adding that most crew members also want her off the boat.
3 When Captain Sandy Fractured Her Wrist
Below Deck Med Season 8
Captain Sandy worked tirelessly on the show without any major accidents for years. However, things changed in Below Deck Mediterranean season 8, where she picked her first major on-camera injury due to a minor miscalculation. The scene unfolded in episode 7 when Captain Sandy and bosun Luka Brunton moved a kayak on the yacht. The two were talking, which meant they weren’t paying attention to where they stepped. As expected, Captain Sandy tripped over and broke her wrist. Thankfully, the injury wasn’t as major as she initially thought. It was a minor fracture that healed.
2 When Captain Sandy Gave Kyle A Warning
Below Deck Med Season 8
Kyle Viljoen quickly became the villain of Below Deck Mediterranean season 8. He instigated chief stew Tumi Mhlongo against his friend Natalya “Nat” Scudder for ulterior motives. The South African man interfered so much that Natalya quit the show mid-season, citing she just couldn’t handle the mental stress. Fortunately, Captain Sandy saw that it was all Kyle’s fault. She talked to the man and gave him a formal warning, as many viewers begged her to fire him. She said, “I promise you I will put you on the dock so fast if you don’t change your bullying, your screaming, your lack of respect in the workplace for people.”
1 Captain Sandy Firing Hannah
Below Deck Med Season 5
After the 5-hour absence incident in season 3, Captain Sandy had her guard up for Hannah. She liked her a bit but no longer trusted her as she used to in the earlier seasons. In Below Deck Mediterranean season 5, Captain Sandy finally had enough and fired her chief stew. During one of the episodes, Captain Sandy confronted Hannah for bringing “drugs on board.” She said, “this is very serious, management is involved.” In the next scene, the Below Deck captain fired Hannah, citing she couldn’t work with somebody doing drugs.
