ll five men on board the missing Titanic submarine are dead, according to the company that owns the craft.
In a statement, OceanGate said: “We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost.
“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 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.”
This undated handout from the Dawood Hercules Corporation released on June 20, 2023 shows businessman Shahzada Dawood, the vice-chairman of Karachi-headquartered conglomerate Engro, and his son Suleman.
/ DAWOOD HERCULES CORPORATION/AFPOne of the co-founder of OceanGate said the craft may have suffered an “instantaeous implosion”.
Guillermo Söhnlein told the BBC: “What I do know is regardless of the sub, when you’re operating at depth the pressure is so great on any sub that if there is a failure it would be an instantaneous implosion. If that’s what happened that’s what would have happened four days ago.”
Hamish Harding
/ InstagramThe remains of the craft – called Titan – are believed to be about 900 miles east and 400 miles south of Newfoundland. It is not known how deep the vessel is, with the seabed being around 3,800m from the surface.
Rear Admiral John Mauger, First Coast Guard District commander, said the debris was found 1,600 ft from the bow of the Titanic and said it was “consistent” with a “catastrophic loss” of pressure.
He told a press conference: “I hope this discovery provides some solace during this difficult time.”
The US Coast Guard said a remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) from the Canadian Horizon Arctic ship found the remains.
The USCG said the ROV that made the discovery was from the Canadian Horizon Arctic ship.
Assistance from the Royal Air Force (RAF) is due to arrive in St John’s on Thursday after it confirmed a request was received overnight for help with movement of additional commercial equipment.
Two RAF planes, a C-17 Globemaster and A400 Atlas, departed RAF Lossiemouth in north-east Scotland on Thursday.
A British submariner and equipment from a UK firm has been sent to help the search at the request of the US Coastguard, Downing Street said.
Royal Navy submariner Lieutenant Commander Richard Kantharia, who was on exchange with the US Navy, has been seconded to the search and rescue team.
