The missing Titanic sub suffered a ‘catastrophic implosion’ as OceanGate says the five passengers on board are now dead.
The submersible lost contact with its mothership on Sunday (18 June) when it went to explore the wreck of the Titanic.
US Coast Guard officials believed there was approximately 96 hours worth of oxygen left on board from the time the vessel went missing.
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They said that passengers would have run out of oxygen at around 1pm BST today (22 June).
A statement from OceanGate confirmed the tragedy: “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.
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“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.
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“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."
Rear Admiral John Mauger confirmed that the tail cone of the missing Titan submersible has also been found close to the wreck of the Titanic.
During a press conference in Boston on Thursday (22 June), he said: “This morning, an ROV, or remote operated vehicle from the vessel Horizon Arctic discovered the tail cone of the Titan submersible approximately 1,600ft from the bow of the Titanic on the sea floor.
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“The ROV subsequently found additional debris.
“In consultation with experts from within the unified command, the debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber.
“Upon this determination, we immediately notified the families.
“On behalf of the United States Coast Guard and the entire unified command, I offer my deepest condolences to the families. I can only imagine what this has been like for them.
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“And I hope that this discovery provides some solace during this difficult time.”
Mauger added: "This is an incredibly unforgiving environment down there on the sea floor and the debris is consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel.
"We will continue to work and we will continue to search down there but I don't have an answer for prospects at this time..."
Featured Image Credit: Yahoo News/OceangateTopics: Titanic, World News, UK News, News