The message: "All five on board are presumed dead"

Submarine lost at Titanic 

 

All the people on Titan are presumed dead 

 

Nora Fernstedt  

 

Updated 22:13 |  

Published at 5:55 p.m  

 

News  

 

Just before 21, the tragic news finally came.  

 

All five people who were on board the submarine Titan are presumed dead.  

 

Wreckage from the submarine has been found on the seabed, the Coast Guard confirms at a press conference. 

 

Hamish Harding, Shahzada Dawood, Suleman Dawood, Paul-Henri Nargeolet and Stockton Rush.  

 

All five men who boarded the submarine Titan on Sunday to see the wreck of the Titanic up close are now presumed dead. 

 

"These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure and deep passion for exploring and protecting the world's oceans," Oceangate, the company that owns the submarine, wrote in a statement. 

 

"Our thoughts are with these five souls and each and every one of their family members at this tragic time."  

 

The five on board, Shahzada Dawood, Suleman Dawood, Paul-Henry Nargeolet, Stockton Rush, and Hamish Harding, are all feared dead.  

 

The five on board, Shahzada Dawood, Suleman Dawood, Paul-Henry Nargeolet, Stockton Rush, and Hamish Harding, are all feared dead. Photo: AP  

 

"Indicates catastrophic implosion"  

 

At 08:55 on Thursday morning, local time, wreckage from the Titan was found on the sea floor - 500 meters from the Titanic's wreckage, at a depth of 3,800 meters.  

 

The parts are consistent with a "catastrophic implosion" of the craft, according to the Coast Guard.  

 

Among other things, two parts of the submarine's pressure chamber were found. 

 

- After this discovery, we immediately contacted the families, says Admiral John Mauger at the Coast Guard's press conference in Boston. 

 

An underwater expert says that five large pieces have been found. Among other things, it is a pointed cover from the rear part of the submarine and a part from the underside of the submarine.  

 

The submarine does not appear to have collided with or become stuck in the Titanic's wreckage, as some experts have speculated.

 

John Mauger, Coast Guard. Photo: Steven Senne/AP  

The bodies may not be found  

 

Admiral Mauger could not answer whether they will be able to find and bring home any bodies. 

 

- We continue to search. But this is an incredibly unforgiving environment, he said, repeating that the craft has imploded. 

 

- I have no answer to what the prospects look like right now. Satellite image from the search for the submarine Titan during Thursday.  

 

Satellite image from the search for the submarine Titan during Thursday  Photo: ©2023 Maxar Technologies / AP  

 

Asked when the implosion might have occurred, Admiral Mauger did not give a straight answer. But he said the Coast Guard had buoys with sonar out in the water for 72 hours.  

 

At that time, they have not perceived any "catastrophic events".  

 

Nor does it appear that the pounding noises heard repeatedly came from the submarine.  

 

Over the next 24 hours, all personnel and the nine vessels will begin to leave the site.  

Photo: TT NEWS AGENCY  

Oxygen out  

 

The submarine Titan, with five people on board, disappeared on Sunday. It would then go down to a depth of 3,800 meters to explore the wreck of the Titanic. 

 

But less than two hours into the dive, contact with the mother ship was lost. 

 

Since then, a massive international rescue team has been fighting against the clock. Earlier today, a French deep-sea robot was sent down to search the waters surrounding the wreck of the Titanic.  

 

At 1:08 p.m., Swedish time, the critical time was passed when it is estimated that the oxygen in the submarine has run out. By then the search had been going on for 96 hours.