Deep in the Atlantic, a ‘Catastrophic Implosion’ and Five Lives Lost
The vast multinational search for the missing submersible ended after pieces of it were found on the ocean floor, 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic.
A vast multinational search for five people who had descended to view the wreckage of the sunken R.M.S. Titanic ended on Thursday after pieces of the privately owned submersible vessel that had carried them were found on the ocean floor, evidence of a “catastrophic implosion” with no survivors, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The dramatic search effort, in a remote area of the North Atlantic 900 miles off Cape Cod, Mass., had mesmerized people worldwide for days after the 22-foot watercraft, called Titan, lost contact with its parent ship less than two hours into its voyage on Sunday. The grim discovery, by a remotely operated vehicle scouring the sea bottom, also trained attention on high-risk, high-cost adventure tourism, raising questions about the safety protocols followed by companies that run such expeditions.
“Our thoughts are with the families and making sure they have an understanding, as best as we can provide, of what happened,” Rear Adm. John Mauger, commander of the First Coast Guard District, said at a news conference in Boston. “It is a complex case to work through, but I’m confident those questions will begin to get answered.”
Stockton Rush, 61, the chief executive of OceanGate Expeditions, the company that owned Titan, was piloting the submersible and among those presumed dead. Others on board were Hamish Harding, 58, a British explorer; Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, a French maritime expert who had made more than 35 dives to the Titanic; Shahzada Dawood, 48, a British businessman; and his 19-year-old son, Suleman Dawood, a university student.
The quest for the missing vessel was seen at the start as a race against time, as rescuers who hoped the Titan might still be intact hurried to reach the area where it had descended before its supply of oxygen ran out. Hopes surged on Wednesday, after banging noises were detected underwater by maritime surveillance planes; U.S. Navy experts analyzed the sounds for signs that they might be attempts by the Titan’s passengers to signal their location.
But on Thursday afternoon, four days after the vessel went missing, those hopes were extinguished by evidence discovered more than two miles beneath the ocean surface: the tail cone of the Titan adrift on the sea floor, one-third of a mile from the bow of the Titanic, along with the two broken ends of its pressure hull. The debris, Admiral Mauger said, was “consistent with the catastrophic loss of its pressure chamber.”
On Thursday evening, a U.S. Navy official said that underwater sensors had registered readings “consistent with an explosion or implosion” shortly after the loss of contact. That information was sent to the incident commander to help narrow down the search area, the official said.
Without conclusive evidence of a catastrophic failure, it would have been “irresponsible” to assume the five people were dead, the Navy official said, so the mission was treated as an ongoing search and rescue even as the outcome appeared grim.
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the Navy’s possible detection of the implosion.
Asked about the prospect of recovering the bodies of the victims, Admiral Mauger said he did not have an answer. “This is an incredibly unforgiving environment down there on the sea floor,” he said.
The search for the Titan drew an international response, as French, British and Canadian ships struck out for the final resting place of the Titanic, ferrying high-tech search-and-rescue equipment. There was a robot capable of searching 13,000 feet below the ocean’s surface, and a hyperbaric recompression chamber used to treat diving-related illnesses. But the effort was slowed by the sheer distance they had to travel to reach the site, a journey of several days for some.
There is no indication that the vessel imploded as a result of a collision with the Titanic wreckage; the debris from the Titan was found in a nearby area where the sea bottom is smooth, said Carl Hartsfield, an underwater vehicle designer at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts who assisted the Coast Guard in the search.
Nine vessels remained in the area as the search for remnants of the Titan, and mapping of the debris field, continued on Thursday afternoon, but Admiral Mauger said they would begin to disperse in the next 24 hours.
“These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans,” OceanGate Expeditions said in a statement. “Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time.”
With his expedition business, founded in 2009 in Everett, Wash., Mr. Rush had sought to open up wider access to deep-sea exploration. Beginning in 2021, the company offered tourists, travelers and Titanic fanatics who could afford the $250,000 price tag a firsthand look at the remains of the infamous shipwreck that killed more than 1,500 people on its maiden voyage in April 1912 after the luxury liner hit an iceberg.
But Mr. Rush’s venture also drew concern and criticism from industry peers who feared that insufficient safety tests and lax precautions would put its passengers at risk.
James Cameron, the Oscar-winning filmmaker and expert diver whose 1997 blockbuster about the Titanic fueled a new wave of fascination with it, criticized OceanGate in an interview on Thursday for betraying the trust of its paying passengers by foregoing safety certifications.
Along with other experts, Mr. Cameron said the carbon-fiber composites used in Titan’s construction were a risk because the material was not designed to withstand the crushing pressure that bears down on vessels deep beneath the ocean.
Concerns about the company’s practices were not new. In 2018, three dozen people — industry leaders, deep-sea explorers and oceanographers — sent a letter to Mr. Rush, warning that the company’s “experimental” approach could lead to potentially “catastrophic” problems.
The Titan’s final dive almost did not happen, as weather conditions failed to cooperate. When a window suddenly opened, Mr. Harding, a veteran explorer, saw it as a lucky break. “Due to the worst winter in Newfoundland in 40 years,” he wrote in a social media post last Saturday, “this mission is likely to be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023.”
His last dive was far from his deepest. In 2021, Mr. Harding made a record-setting trip to the deepest part of the Mariana Trench, in the western Pacific Ocean. A four hour, 15-minute drop of 36,000 feet, the trek took him nearly three times deeper than the site of the Titanic. According to a media report at the time, only 18 people had ever journeyed to the area, known as the Challenger Deep. By comparison, 24 astronauts have orbited or landed on the moon.
Mr. Harding knew the risks. “If something goes wrong, you are not coming back,” he said in an interview after the dive in 2021.
Conditions inside the submersible were not plush. Images from the company’s website showed a vessel with an interior like a metal tube, where passengers sat on the floor with their backs to the curved walls. There were no chairs, little room to move or stand upright, and a single viewing window, 21 inches in diameter.
Yet for some with money and a passion for adventure, the promise of a rare experience was worth the risk of death — a risk repeatedly detailed in the legal waivers signed by passengers, according to some who had made the trip.
The thrill of the outermost limits had called to Mr. Rush since childhood. In an interview with “CBS Sunday Morning” in 2022, the OceanGate founder said he grew up wanting to be an astronaut and, later, a fighter pilot.
“It was about exploring,” Mr. Rush said. “It was about finding new life-forms. I wanted to be sort of the Captain Kirk. I didn’t want to be the passenger in the back. And I realized that the ocean is the universe.”
At the heart of the Atlantic, an event of ‘Cataclysmic Collapse’ has caused the loss of Five Human Souls.
The mammoth multinational pursuit for the absent submersible ceased as fragments of it were discovered on the marine floor, 1,600 feet from the bow of the ill-fated Titanic.
A comprehensive multinational endeavour to locate five individuals who embarked on a journey to gaze upon the sunken remnants of the notorious R.M.S Titanic was concluded on Thursday. The remnants of the privately held underwater vessel which conveyed them were located on the seabed, which bore the signs of a “cataclysmic collapse” leaving no survivors according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The spellbinding rescue operation, in a secluded region of the North Atlantic 900 miles off the coast of Cape Cod, Mass., had captivated the global populace for several days following the mysterious disappearance of the 22-foot watercraft, christened Titan, which lost contact with its parent ship within two hours of embarking on its voyage on Sunday. The morose revelation, observed by a remote operating vehicle scanning the ocean depths, also spotlighted the perilous and exorbitantly priced adventure tourism, inducing enquiries about safety procedures employed by enterprises operating these expeditions.
“With heavy hearts, we extend our thoughts to the bereaved families and aim to provide them with some level of understanding regarding the circumstances, as far as we are capable,” proclaimed Rear Adm. John Mauger, the commander of the First Coast Guard District, during a press briefing in Boston. “The case is convoluted, but I remain hopeful that the questions will be gradually answered.”
At the helm of the Titan was Stockton Rush, 61, the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, the firm that held the ownership rights to the Titan, and who is now among those presumed to have perished. The other occupants included Hamish Harding, 58, a British explorer; Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, a French maritime connoisseur who had undertaken more than 35 dives to the Titanic; Shahzada Dawood, 48, a British businessman; and his 19-year-old progeny, Suleman Dawood, a university student.
The frantic search for the missing vessel was initially seen as a battle against the ticking clock. Rescuers were optimistic that the Titan was still intact and were hastening to reach the area where it had descended before the oxygen supply depleted. Optimism skyrocketed on Wednesday, after percussive sounds were detected underwater by maritime surveillance aircraft; the noises were scrutinised by U.S. Navy specialists for indications that they may be a means employed by the Titan’s passengers to relay their coordinates.
However, on Thursday afternoon, a mere four days post the disappearance of the vessel, those hopes were crushed by evidence found more than two miles below the ocean’s surface: the tail cone of the Titan resting on the ocean bed, roughly one-third of a mile from the bow of the Titanic, accompanied by the two shattered ends of its pressure hull. The debris, as per Admiral Mauger, was “indicative of the catastrophic disintegration of its pressure chamber.”
On Thursday evening, a U.S. Navy official disclosed that underwater sensors had registered readings “indicative of an explosion or implosion” subsequent to the loss of communication. This information was relayed to the incident commander to aid in narrowing down the search area, the official mentioned.
In the absence of concrete evidence pointing towards a disastrous failure, it would have been “reckless” to assume that the five individuals were no longer alive, the Navy official stated. Thus, the mission was treated as an ongoing search and rescue operation despite the ominous outlook.
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the Navy’s possible detection of the implosion.
In response to inquiries about the possibility of retrieving the remains of the victims, Admiral Mauger confessed his uncertainty. “The sea floor presents an incredibly harsh and unforgiving environment,” he admitted.
The search for the Titan invoked an international response, with French, British, and Canadian vessels embarking on a mission towards the final resting place of the Titanic, carrying sophisticated search-and-rescue equipment. Among the tools was a robot capable of scouring depths of 13,000 feet below the ocean’s surface, and a hyperbaric recompression chamber utilised to treat illnesses related to deep-sea diving. However, the distance to the site proved a hindrance, making the journey several days long for some vessels.
Carl Hartsfield, an underwater vehicle designer at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts who assisted the Coast Guard in the search, stated that there was no evidence suggesting that a collision with the Titanic wreckage led to the Titan’s implosion; the debris from the Titan was found in a neighbouring area where the seabed is smooth.
Nine vessels remained in the vicinity as the search for the remnants of the Titan and the mapping of the debris field continued on Thursday afternoon, but Admiral Mauger mentioned that they would start to disperse within the next 24 hours.
“These men were true pioneers who embodied a unique spirit of adventure, and a profound passion for exploring and preserving the world’s oceans,” OceanGate Expeditions mentioned in a statement. “Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time.”
With his expedition business, established in 2009 in Everett, Wash., Mr. Rush had aimed to widen the accessibility to deep-sea exploration. Commencing in 2021, the company offered tourists, travellers and Titanic enthusiasts, who could afford the $250,000 price tag, a first-hand view of the remnants of the infamous shipwreck that claimed the lives of over 1,500 people during its maiden voyage in April 1912 after the luxury liner collided with an iceberg.
However, Mr. Rush’s venture also sparked concern and criticism from his industry peers who feared that inadequate safety tests and relaxed precautions could endanger its passengers.
James Cameron, the Academy Award-winning filmmaker and expert diver, whose 1997 Titanic blockbuster reignited the public fascination with the ship, chastised OceanGate in an interview on Thursday for betraying the trust of its paying passengers by neglecting safety certifications.
In unison with other experts, Mr. Cameron suggested that the carbon-fibre composites employed in Titan’s construction posed a risk as the material was not designed to resist the immense pressure exerted on vessels at great depths below the ocean surface.
Concerns regarding the company’s operations were not novel. In 2018, a group of thirty-six people — industry leaders, deep-sea explorers, and oceanographers — addressed a letter to Mr. Rush, cautioning that the company’s “experimental” approach could lead to potentially “catastrophic” repercussions.
The Titan’s final dive nearly didn’t transpire, due to uncooperative weather conditions. When a window of opportunity suddenly appeared, Mr. Harding, a seasoned explorer, saw it as a fortunate turn of events. “Due to the worst winter in Newfoundland in 40 years,” he noted in a social media post last Saturday, “this mission is likely to be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023.”
His final dive was far from his most profound. In 2021, Mr. Harding undertook a record-breaking journey to the deepest recess of the Mariana Trench, located in the Western Pacific Ocean. A four hour and 15-minute descent of 36,000 feet, this venture took him nearly three times deeper than the Titanic site. At the time, media reports noted that a mere 18 people had ever embarked on a journey to this region, known as the Challenger Deep. To put it into perspective, a higher number of astronauts, 24 to be precise, have either orbited or landed on the moon.
Mr. Harding was well acquainted with the inherent risks. “If something goes awry, you won’t be returning,” he candidly stated in a post-dive interview in 2021.
The conditions inside the submersible were far from luxurious. Images from the company’s website painted a picture of a vessel with an interior akin to a metal cylinder, where passengers sat on the floor with their backs against the curved walls. The lack of seating, restricted room to manoeuvre or stand upright, and a solitary viewing window, 21 inches in diameter, didn’t make for a comfortable journey.
Yet for some affluent adventure enthusiasts, the allure of an unusual experience outweighed the fatal risks — risks that were exhaustively detailed in the legal waivers signed by passengers, according to those who had undertaken the journey.
The thrill of reaching the furthest limits had been a lure for Mr. Rush since his childhood. In a 2022 interview with “CBS Sunday Morning”, the OceanGate founder disclosed that he aspired to be an astronaut and, later, a fighter pilot as a child.
“It was about exploration,” Mr. Rush expounded. “It was about discovering new life-forms. I aspired to be somewhat of a Captain Kirk. I didn’t want to be a mere passenger in the back. And I realised that the ocean is akin to the universe.”
Author: Jeremy Julius
Consultant, international policy expert, accompatban companies on their path to growth in highly developed markets. He collaborates with The Deeping for insights in the political/social area