Submarine tragedy: Video reveals doomed "Titan" wreckage
2:09 PM EDT, September 21, 2024
American officials have released footage of the submarine "Titan," the wreckage that went missing over a year ago. Hearings have also commenced regarding the tragedy. Former OceanGate Chief Operating Officer David Lochridge assessed that the accident was "inevitable."
The "Titan" submarine, owned by OceanGate, submerged on June 18, 2023, carrying, among others, OceanGate's CEO Stockton Rush, British billionaire Hamish Harding, French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and Pakistani millionaire Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman.
The tourists intended to view the wreck of the "Titanic," located at a depth of about 12,500 feet (3.8 km), roughly 370 miles (600 km) from the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. The cost to participate in this expedition was $250,000 per person. Contact with the "Titan" was lost just under two hours after submersion. A few days later, the wreckage of the submarine was found, and experts determined that an implosion had occurred.
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) released a video showing the wreckage of the underwater vessel Titan. Transcripts of the crew's communication with the unit from which the Titan set out were also revealed. The footage was recorded using a search robot on June 22, 2023, four days after the disaster.
The conversation log between the ship and the Titan's crew indicates no problems or malfunctions were noticed during the voyage. The last message, sent an hour and a half after submersion at a depth of about 10,000 feet (3,340 m), concerned the release of some ballast intended to slow down the descent. A few seconds later, contact with the Titan was lost.
The footage from the bottom of the Atlantic sheds light on the possible course of events. The only relatively intact component of the Titan was the stern—the remaining parts were in ruins. The stern was not filled with air, allowing water to flow freely through it, unlike the front section where the crew was located. DNA of all the men was found on the wreckage of the Titan.
It is still unknown what caused the accident. Investigators are set to present a possible scenario of the tragic events next year.
According to the "Guardian," David Lochridge, former Chief Operating Officer of OceanGate, testified before the USCG, calling the accident "inevitable." His testimony emerged as the Coast Guard released video footage of the Titan's remains for the first time.
He claimed that safety standards were compromised for profit. He warned the company that the hull of the submarine might not withstand the journey to the Titanic wreck.
Lochridge also mentioned that OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush had crashed another underwater vessel during a dive to the Andrea Doria wreck off the coast of Massachusetts in 2016. Lochridge was dismissed in 2018.
