OceanGate Explorations, a private company that operates trips to explore the wreckage of the Titanic, has confirmed that they believe all five people aboard their submersible, Titan, are lost. The submersible went missing on Sunday whilst on a 12.5kft dive to the site of the famous shipwreck. CEO Stockton Rush, British explorer Hamish Harding, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year old son Suleman, and French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet were aboard. The submersible had been equipped with 96 hours of oxygen for the passengers, meaning that the oxygen supply would have run out this morning at the latest.
Sonar devices picked up banging sounds coming from the area where the submersible was lost, giving some hope that the passengers might still be found alive, but as time pressed on and the oxygen supply depleted, it became increasingly unlikely. The coastguard located a debris field by a remotely operated vehicle which had been sent down to search for the missing submersible. The debris found by the ROV from Horizon Arctic, was confirmed to be part of the missing submersible, specifically the landing frame and part of the rear cover, and was located approximately 500 meters from the bow of the Titanic. The Coast Guard says it is consistent with catastrophic loss of the submersible.
The company released a statement expressing their condolences for the loss of life. These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans, it said. The entire OceanGate family is deeply grateful for the countless men and women from multiple organisations of the international community who expedited wide-ranging resources and have worked so very hard on this mission, the statement also said.
