LAST WORDS
‘What could go wrong,’ CEO of OceanGate said before Titan submarine disaster that killed five, new documentary reveals
The CEO was warned that something could go wrong, but he ignored concerns
A CRYPTIC comment from OceanGate’s CEO has resurfaced in the first documentary on the tragic disappearance of the submarine headed to the Titanic.
OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush spoke with St. John’s Radio in Canada on February 9, 2023, just months before the Titan submarine started its journey in the North Atlantic Ocean on June 18 last year.
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“What could go wrong?” Rush cryptically said in the 2023 interview when speaking of Titan's voyage, The New York Post reported.
Rush also spoke in the new documentary about how some people may see the trip to the Titanic as a scary experience.
“For many it’s haunting,” he added.
The audio clip featuring his comments is presented in Minute by Minute: The Titan Sub Disaster, a documentary from the UK’s Channel 5 that aired on March 6 and 7.
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The submarine was set to dive 12,000 feet in the Atlantic Ocean to reach the wreckage of the infamous Titanic, a trip that would have taken around two-and-a-half hours.
The Titan ended up losing contact with its support ship, Polar Prince, just an hour and 45 minutes into the dive.
Polar Prince eventually contacted the Coast Guard and a frantic search began for the submarine.
The submarine was carrying five passengers, including Rush and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77.
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The other passengers were British Pakistani billionaire Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son Suleiman, 19, along with British billionaire/explorer Hamish Harding, 58.
Each passenger paid about $250,000 per ticket to join the voyage.
Cops launch probe into Titanic sub implosion which killed five crew including Brit billionaire Hamish Harding
Authorities declared on June 22 that everyone aboard the submarine was presumed dead after searchers found debris believed to be from a “catastrophic implosion.”
Before the doomed trip, Rush was confident that the submarine would see no issues on its voyage.
Rush even bragged about the submarine’s ability to handle pressure in his interview with St. John’s Radio.
“The key element with any sub, submersible, or submarine, is the pressure vessel: what you’re in. Make sure that thing doesn’t collapse,” Rush said.
“So we spent a lot of time with NASA and Boeing and everybody else to make sure that doesn’t collapse.”
Rush was warned that he should have the Titan certified by third parties for safety checks, but he went through with the mission without them.
FALSE HOPE
The documentary Minute by Minute: The Titan Sub Disaster also features never-before-heard audio of banging heard underwater, which gave searchers hope that the crew would be found alive.
After the sound was first recorded at around 11:30 pm on June 20, the US Navy confirmed that it had detected the noises the next morning.
Coast Guard Captain Jamie Frederick admitted he was baffled, saying at the time, "With respect to the noises, specifically, we don't know what they are, to be frank with you."
The world watched on anxiously as rescuers urgently doubled their efforts to track down the missing sub before oxygen was expected to run out.
Tragically, hopes raised by the mysterious knocking sound were later lost as experts attributed the sounds to noises of other ships in the area.
The series also questions what lessons can be learned from the disaster.
RUSH'S VISION
Rush founded OceanGate Inc. in 2009 and the company planned its first voyage to the Titanic in 2018, but the vessel sustained damage to its electronics from lightning.
The voyage was postponed again the year following due to a problem with complying with Canadian maritime law limitations on foreign flag vessels.
Its first successful trip came two years later, but the Titan had to be rebuilt after tests showed signs of “cyclic fatigue.”
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In 2020, OceanGate announced it was working with NASA to ensure the submersible was strong enough to withstand the 13,000-foot descent to the site of the Titanic.
According to the company’s website, OceanGate had successfully completed more than 14 expeditions and more than 200 dives in the Pacific, Atlantic, and the Gulf of Mexico.
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