The tour operator responsible for the Titan submersible disaster which killed five people used ‘intimidation tactics’ to avoid scrutiny, the US Coast Guard said.
The world watched on with baited breath as OceanGate sent the Titan sub down to try and visit the wreckage of the Titanic at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean in June 2023.
But just days later, after communication was lost and a frantic search and rescue mission, its imploded wreckage was found on the sea bed.
All five passengers – CEO Stockton Rush, UK billionaire Hamish Harding, French explorer Paul Henry Nargeolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son, Suleman – were killed.
Now the US Coast Guard has released a long-awaited damning report which concludes that OceanGate ‘leveraged intimidation tactics to evade regulatory scrutiny’ and send the Titan on its fatal mission.
Titan report critical of Stockton Rush
Eight ‘primary causal factors’ that led to the implosion were identified in the 335-page report, which also criticised OceanGate’s ‘toxic workplace environment’ and ‘disturbing pattern of misrepresentation and reckless disregard for safety’.
The Titan sub was continually used despite ‘a series of incidents that compromised the integrity of the hull and other critical components’.
The sub was made of carbon fibre, which an expert told Metro had ‘never been’ an appropriate material to build deep water submarines, because it gets weaker with every dive.
OceanGate’s former director of engineering said the first hull used on the Titan was akin to a ‘high school project’, the US Coast Guard said.
Authored by lead investigator Thomas Whalen and marine board chairman Jason Neubauer, the report concluded: ‘For several years preceding the incident, OceanGate leveraged intimidation tactics, allowances for scientific operations, and the company’s favourable reputation to evade regulatory scrutiny.
‘By strategically creating and exploiting regulatory confusion and oversight challenges, OceanGate was ultimately able to operate Titan completely outside of the established deep-sea protocols, which had historically contributed to a strong safety record for commercial submersibles.
‘The lack of both third-party oversight and experienced OceanGate employees on staff during their 2023 Titan operations allowed OceanGate’s chief executive officer to completely ignore vital inspections, data analyses, and preventative maintenance procedures, culminating in a catastrophic event.’
The report also concluded there was evidence of ‘potential criminal offences’ in the case of Mr Rush, saying he had ‘exhibited negligence that contributed to the deaths of four individuals’ and may have been accused of ‘misconduct or neglect of ship officers’ had he survived the incident.
This offence carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years in the US.
Concerns raised about Stockton Rush before the accident
Rob McCallum, a former OceanGate consultant, raised concerns with Mr Rush after the CEO decided against getting official certification for the Titan.
Subs can be certified by marine organisations, meaning it must meet certain stability, strength and safety standards, but this isn’t compulsory.
In emails to Mr Rush sent in 2018 and seen by the BBC, Mr McCallum said: ‘You are wanting to use a prototype un-classed technology in a very hostile place. As much as I appreciate entrepreneurship and innovation, you are potentially putting an entire industry at risk.
‘4,000m down in the mid-Atlantic is not the kind of place you can cut corners.’
Rush replied that he was ‘tired of industry players who try to use a safety argument to stop innovation’, and their exchange ended after OceanGate’s lawyers threatened legal action, Mr McCallum said.
Former OceanGate employee David Lochridge had previously told a colleague he was worried Stockton would get himself and others killed.
He raised concerns in an inspection report in 2018 which found ‘numerous issues that posed serious safety concerns’.
The details emerged after he filed a lawsuit against OceanGate, claiming he had been fired for raising safety concerns.
In the same year, the Marine Technology Society accused OceanGate of making misleading claims about its design exceeding established industry safety standards, and warned its ‘experimental’ approach could result in ‘negative outcomes (from minor to catastrophic)’.
Titan timeline: From descent to implosion
If you have been following the story, here is a timeline of what happened with the Titan sub search in June 2023:
Saturday, June 17
2pm: Billionaire explorer Hamish Harding posts on Instagram to reveal he is among the crew of a submersible vessel on their way to explore the Titanic wreckage.
Sunday, June 18
4am: The crew begins their 4,000m descent to the wreck.
7.30am: The are dropped into the ocean in their 22-foot long submersible vessel, the Titan.
9.47am: The vessel loses contact with OceanGate.
10am: The final signal is sent and there is no further contact with them.
5.15pm: The vessel is due to resurface around nine hours after diving.
5.40pm: When the submersible fails to resurface, the crew raises the alarm with authorities.
10pm: All five members are identified as being on board.
Monday, June 19
9am: Authorities reveal the Titan is missing and a large-scale search is then launched.
Tuesday, June 20
Submersible craft including an unmanned US Navy Curv-21, which can reach depth of 4,000m, joins the search.
The Polar Prince and 106 Rescue Wing continues to conduct surface searches throughout Monday evening.
A Canadian Aircraft P3 Aurora joins the effort, as the search area expands to 10,000sqm.
6pm: US Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger tell reporters it is a ‘challenge’ to conduct a search in such a remote area.
Wednesday, June 21
6am: It is reported that ‘noises’ have are heard by sonar crews searching for the missing sub, giving fresh hope that passengers are still alive.
8pm: Captain Jamie Frederick says noises heard on Tuesday have also been heard today, but search teams ‘don’t know what they are’.
8pm: The US Coast Guard provides a prediction of the time it thinks oxygen will run out in the Titan: 7.08am local time.
9.30pm: A French ship named the Atalante, which is sent over on President Emmanuel Macron’s orders, arrives to join the search.
Thursday, June 22
7am: 10 ships and remote submarines are in the area, doubling the size of the operation.
12.08pm/1pm: The Titan’s oxygen supply is due to run out.
3.45pm: Victor 6000, the underwater robot dubbed the ‘last hope’ for missing Titanic sub, is deployed to help the search.
4.55pm: A ‘debris field’ is discovered within the search area for the missing Titan submersible, the US Coast Guard announces.
7.55pm: The US Coast Guard says the Titan submersible was destroyed by a ‘catastrophic implosion’ with the loss of all five people aboard.
Again in 2018 more than 35 industry leaders and deep-sea explorers wrote an open letter to Mr Rush warning that his ‘experimental’ attitude towards getting the Titan mission off the ground could bring catastrophic results, The New York Times reported.
Mr Rush claimed the industry players were trying to use a ‘safety argument’ to ‘stop innovation’.
According to today’s report, a contractor hired in 2022 voiced ‘numerous safety concerns’ to a company director.
The contractor was then reportedly told: ‘You have a bad attitude, you don’t have an explorer mindset, you know, we’re innovative and we’re cowboys, and a lot of people can’t handle that.’
That same year, Mr Rush said ‘at some point, safety is just pure waste’ during an interview with CBS.
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