As investigations unfold, questions arise regarding the adherence to safety measures and the potential risks faced by the ill-fated vessel.
The 22-foot-long submersible Titan, with five passengers onboard, witnessed a “catastrophic implosion” after days of losing communication and sinking miles below the ocean surface level. During the relentless search and rescue operations that lasted for several days, reports revealed that the vessel which went for an expedition was under tremendous risk.
During the search operation, the oxygen level of the vessel was constantly tracked and the lack of enough safety measures taken before the deepwater expedition were repeatedly flagged. According to several reports, Titan had to withstand great pressure from being almost 4,000 metres (13,100ft) below sea level and it faced the threat of getting lost or losing contact with the surface. This is the depth at which Titanic rests.
The US Coast Guard officials on Thursday confirmed that the debris found near Titanic wreck was “consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel”. While it might be too early to say what exactly causesed the destruction of the vessel, experts are pointing to reports that have questioned whether appropriate safety measures were followed by the OceanGate submersible.
The expedition that the Titan submersible and its crew were undergoing was tremendously risky, according to industry experts and former passengers.
The Titan had to withstand the pressure from being almost 4,000 meters (13,100ft) below sea level –the depth at which the Titanic came to rest– and faced the threat of getting lost or losing contact with the surface.
While it is too early to say what happened to the vessel, experts have raised questions over whether all appropriate safety measures were followed.
Stockton Rush, the chief executive and founder of OceanGate, creator of Titan, is among those missing.
Rush has decades of engineering experience and has been at the helm of expeditions to the Titanic since 2021 – this was his fifth. OceanGate said there were a number of innovative safety features onboard the Titan.
The potential risks were made clear to passengers.
Mike Reiss, who travelled on the Titan last year, told the BBC: “You sign a waiver before you get on that mentions death three different times. They’re learning as they go along … things go wrong. I’ve taken three different dives with this company and you almost always [lose] communication.”
On Tuesday, The New York Times published a letter written in 2018 by industry leaders in the submersible vessel field, warning Rush of possible “catastrophic” problems with Titan’s development.
The Marine Technology Society, an industry group made up of ocean engineers, technologists, policymakers, and educators, expressed “concern regarding the development of Titan and the planned Titanic expeditions” and warned against the “current experimental approach adopted by OceanGate”.
At issue was whether the Titan vessel would be independently assessed by industry regulators or risk assessors.
The Marine Technology Society was critical of OceanGate issuing marketing material that stated the Titan design would “meet or exceed the DNV-GL safety standards” while apparently not intending to have the vessel assessed by that same organization.
OceanGate fired employee David Lochridge in 2018 after he raised concerns about the safety of their submersible, the Titan. Lochridge filed a whistleblower complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, leading to OceanGate suing him for breaching his employment contract. In response, Lochridge alleged that he was wrongfully terminated and that his actions aimed to ensure passenger safety. He claimed that the Titan lacked sufficient testing of its hull and that hazardous materials were being used inside the submersible without passenger knowledge. Lochridge believed that OceanGate's decisions could potentially subject passengers to extreme danger. The two sides settled their court case in November 2018.
In February, the CEO of OceanGate, Stockton Rush, was sued by a Florida couple after they struggled to get a refund on their deposits for several canceled trips on the Titan.
The pair, Marc and Sharon Hagle, said in their lawsuit that OceanGate canceled one expedition saying it hadn't had enough time to certify that the Titan could reach the depths of the Titanic.
OceanGate did not respond to requests for comment from the Reuters news agency, and its attorney in the Lochridge case, Thomas Gilman, declined comment. OceanGate also remains tight-lipped about the lawsuits, allegations, and safety concerns.