This incident took place on June 18, 2023, but it will leave its mark on the luxury travel and cruise industry. Then, OceanGate Expeditions’ submarine Titan suffered an accident while descending to visit the remains of the Titanic. The explosion rocked the industry, killing five tourists on board. This led to a wave of scrutiny over the safety practices of the company operating the trip and the private underwater exploration industry in general. A hearing began this week, with details and final messages from passengers already revealed.

First testimony. The first person to testify today was Tony Nissen, OceanGate’s former engineering manager. He said the submarine was under enormous pressure to make it work, but he did not believe the tests were rushed. But Nissen noted that it was “a difficult question to answer” because “given infinite time and an infinite budget, you can do infinite testing.”

In addition, it was detailed that the submarine was struck by lightning during a test in the Bahamas in 2018, potentially compromising the hull. In this sense, as the New York Times points out, the company experienced 70 equipment problems in 2021 and 48 in 2022. Nissen said in 2019 that he was fired for not approving an expedition that year due to concerns about the integrity of the submarine.

Latest messages. As we reported, the trial also revealed the final messages from Titan’s passengers, text messages that suggest they had no idea what was about to happen. According to a visual recreation of the trip provided by the Coast Guard (video below), the crew sent a message to their support vessel, the Polar Prince, saying “All is well here” shortly before losing contact. The message in question was sent at around 10:15 a.m. in Newfoundland on June 18, 2023.

Shortly before this final message, Polar Prince sent several messages to the submarine over a period of 12 minutes, in this case asking if they could see the support ship on its screen, but Titan did not respond. When it finally responded about four minutes later, Polar Prince sent the message, “I need better communication from you,” to which Titan replied, “Yes.” The Coast Guard animation shows Titan losing contact with Polar Prince at 10:47 a.m.

Security is questionable. OceanGate’s former CFO Bonnie Carl also testified today. She said the company had “major concerns” with its staff. She left the company after receiving criticism for lax safety standards for submarines (such as those voiced by film director James Cameron). We recall that OceanGate founder Stockton Rush was one of the five people who died in last year’s explosion, and much of the public criticism was directed at him.

Investigators revealed during the trial that Titan had been stored outdoors in harsh cold conditions during the winter months before the explosion, which may have contributed to the tragedy.

It could have been avoided. Hours earlier, David Lochridge, OceanGate’s former chief operating officer and a key employee, testified that he had described the “doomed experimental” submarine as unsafe before its final, fatal voyage. The man said the tragedy could have been prevented if a federal safety agency had investigated his complaint before the fatal expedition. “I believe this tragedy could have been prevented if OSHA had attempted to investigate the seriousness of the concerns I have repeatedly raised,” he said.

“As a seafarer, I am deeply disappointed in the system that is intended to protect not only seafarers but also the general public,” he added. Lochridge testified that eight months after he filed the complaint, an aide told him the agency had not yet begun investigating the matter and had 11 cases pending.

At the time, OceanGate had sued Lochridge, and he had countersued. Ten months after filing the complaint, he decided to withdraw his complaint. The case was closed and both lawsuits were dismissed.

Seek the truth. “There are no words that can diminish the loss suffered by the families affected by this tragic event,” Jason Neubauer of the Coast Guard’s Bureau of Investigation said at the hearing. “But we hope this hearing will shed light on what caused the tragedy and prevent something like this from happening again.”

The Coast Guard is conducting the investigation at the direction of the Naval Board of Inquiry, and the hearings, which began last Monday, are expected to last at least two weeks.

Image | Ocean Gate

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