LAST UPDATE | 22 Jun 2023
OCEANGATE EXPEDITIONS HAS said it believes that all five passengers from the missing submersible Titan “have sadly been lost”.
In a statement this evening, the company that operates the Titan said it “believes that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost”.
This comes after earlier reports that the “landing frame and cover” of the missing submersible Titan were found.
Speaking at a press conference this evening, shortly after the OceanGate statement was released, Rear Admiral John Mauger of the US Coast Guard said that “this morning, an ROV, or remote operated vehicle from the vessel Horizon Arctic discovered the tail cone of the Titan submersible approximately 1,600ft from the bow of the Titanic on the sea floor”.
“The ROV subsequently found additional debris. In consultation with experts from within the unified command, the debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber,” Mauger said.
“Upon this determination, we immediately notified the families,” he said.
He said that he offered his “deepest condolences” to the families of the five people on board Titan, adding that he hoped the discovery of debris from the craft offered them “some solace during this difficult time”.
BREAKING: The Coast Guard confirms that a remote operated vehicle discovered key parts of the Titan submersible approximately
— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 22, 2023
1600ft (487.68) from the Titanic on the sea floor.
Rear Admiral John Mauger offers his condolences to the families.https://t.co/V3pkizQFDr
📺 Sky 501 pic.twitter.com/6p9CKhBDK7
Mauger said he could not say what the prospects were of recovering the bodies of those killed on the Titan expedition.
“This is an incredibly unforgiving environment down there on the sea floor and the debris is consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel,” he said.
“And so we’ll continue to work and continue to search the area down there, but I don’t have an answer for prospects at this time.”
Mauger said there did not appear to be any connection between the underwater noises detected during the search and rescue mission and the location of the debris on the seafloor.
“This was a catastrophic implosion of the vessel which would have generated a significant broadband sound down there that the sonar buoys would have picked up,” he said.
Founding member of the Board of Trustees of The Explorers Club, Hamish Harding, was on board the undersea craft, alongside UK-based businessman Shahzada Dawood, his son Suleman Dawood, and OceanGate’s chief executive and founder Stockton Rush, as well as French submersible pilot Paul-Henri Nargeolet,
In its statement this evening, OceanGate reportedly said: “These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans.
“Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew.
“This is an extremely sad time for our dedicated employees who are exhausted and grieving deeply over this loss.”
The company added: “The entire OceanGate family is deeply grateful for the countless men and women from multiple organizations of the international community who expedited wide-ranging resources and have worked so very hard on this mission.
“We appreciate their commitment to finding these five explorers, and their days and nights of tireless work in support of our crew and their families.
“This is a very sad time for the entire explorer community, and for each of the family members of those lost at sea.
We respectfully ask that the privacy of these families be respected during this most painful time.”
Undersea expert Paul Hankin said five major pieces of debris helped to identify it as from the Titan submersible.
He told reporters: “We found five different major pieces of debris that told us that it was the remains of the Titan.
“The initial thing we found was the nose cone which was outside of the pressure hull.
“We then found a large debris field. Within that debris field we found the front end bell of the pressure hull.
“That was the first indication that there was a catastrophic event.”
He continued: “Shortly thereafter we found a second smaller debris field. Within that debris field we found the other end of the pressure hull.
“We continue to map out the debris field, and as the admiral said, we will do the best we can to fully map out what’s down there.”
Includes reporting by Press Association
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