The Oceangate Expeditions company behind the submersible excursion believes in a statement that all five occupants have died. Parts of the “Titan” were previously discovered. The mini sub appears to have been destroyed by an implosion.
After days of a feverish search for the mini-submarine “Titan” with five people on board, which disappeared in the North Atlantic, a sad certainty: the US Coast Guard said on Thursday after the discovery of wreckage near the wreck of the ” Titanic” that the “Titanic” was a private submarine destroyed by a “catastrophic implosion”. Thus, all five people on board the “Titan” died. The exact cause of the accident was initially unclear.
US Coast Guard Admiral John Mauger spoke about the “catastrophic loss” of the mini-sub at a press conference in Boston. “I offer my sincere condolences to the families,” added the Coast Guard regional chief. After days of uncertainty for the families, he expressed his hope “that this discovery will offer them some comfort in this difficult time”.
Shortly before, the operator Oceangate Expeditions had declared that it was assuming the death of the occupants of the “Titan”. “We regret the loss of life.” On board the mini-sub were Oceangate Expeditions boss Stockton Rush, British businessman and adventurer Hamish Harding, British-Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman, and French Titanic expert Paul-Henri . Nargeolet.
The “Titan” left on Sunday for a tourist diving trip to the wreck of the “Titanic” that sank in 1912 at a depth of about 3800 meters. After an hour and a half, contact with the escort ship was broken and since then there has been no trace of the approximately 6.5 meter long submarine.
“Debris field” found near the “Titanic”.
On Thursday, the US Coast Guard announced the discovery of a “debris field” near the wreckage of the “Titanic”. She has now confirmed that it was debris from the “Titan”. The wreck was about 500 meters from the wreckage of the “Titanic” on the sea floor.
When exactly the “Titan” imploded was not initially clear. But Rear Admiral Mauger said no “catastrophic events” were recorded at sea when sonar buoys were used to search for the submersible. This would indicate that the mini-sub imploded relatively soon after the dive began. An implosion is the destruction of a hollow body by external pressure and is therefore the opposite of an explosion.
In recent days, emergency services have been looking for the “Titan” from the air and with ships under high pressure. There was hope that despite the tremendous water pressure in the depths of the ocean, the submersible would not be damaged and the occupants would still be alive.
However, it was clear from the start that there was little time left for a search. Even if the submersible had been intact, the oxygen supply would have only lasted 96 hours. Theoretically, the oxygen would have run out during Thursday.
In the meantime, the location of underwater crashing noises has given new hope. However, it was not clear where the noises recorded on Tuesday came from.
Rescue operation with nine ships
For the rescue operation, several ships with diving robots and other special equipment rushed to the huge search area, which is located almost 650 kilometers from the coast of the Canadian province of Newfoundland. More recently, nine ships were in the region.
The death of the mini-submarine’s five occupants caused consternation. US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas expressed his condolences to the relatives and thanked the US Coast Guard and partners involved in the search for their efforts. British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly spoke on Twitter of the “tragic news” and also offered his condolences to the families of those killed.
Operator Oceangate said the five men on board were “true explorers” with “a special spirit of adventure and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans”. We are sorry and our hearts go out to the relatives, she said. It is also an “extremely sad moment” for employees.