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The deadly Titan submersible implosion that claimed the lives of five people in June of 2023 was “preventable,” according to a new report from the U.S. Coast Guard.
The more than 300-page report released Tuesday, August 5 by The U.S. Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation concluded that OceanGate and its CEO Stockton Rush — who died in the submersible’s doomed final mission alongside four others — ignored safety warnings, failed to follow “established engineering protocols,” and relied on “intimidation tactics” to evade scrutiny before the implosion.
The report also called out the need for “improved regulatory oversight” in the future for vessels with novel design and operation methods similar to the Titan submersible, which offered tourists an opportunity to go on an underwater trek to the Titanic wreck site.
The Titan imploded on the morning of June 18, 2023 on a voyage to the Titanic wreck site, instantly killing all five people inside, including CEO and chief pilot Rush, “Titanic content expert” Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and three passengers: Hamish Harding, Shahzada Dawood, and his son Suleman Dawood.
What caused the Titan implosion?
The U.S. Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation concluded that the “primary casual factor” leading to the implosion was “OceanGate’s failure to follow established engineering protocols for safety, testing, and maintenance of their submersible.”
According to the report, OceanGate failed to use “fundamental engineering principles” while constructing the carbon fiber hull of the submersible, then later ignored design flaws, and failed to properly investigate “known hull anomalies” or properly analyze data to predict its life cycle.
The report also stated that OceanGate failed to “conduct any preventative maintenance or properly store the Titan during the extended off season before its 2023 Titanic expedition,” according to a news release on the findings.
“This marine casualty and the loss of five lives was preventable,” Jason Neubauer, the chair of the Titan Marine Board of Investigation, said in a statement. “The two-year investigation has identified multiple contributing factors that led to this tragedy, providing valuable lessons learned to prevent a future occurrence.”
Along with the design, maintenance and inspection flaws, the board also concluded that OceanGate employed “intimidation tactics” and created a toxic work culture that prevented others from coming forward to voice their concerns.
“Glaring disparities”
The board noted “glaring disparities” between the company’s written safety protocols and actual practices.
It contended that the issue was compounded further by a lack of domestic and international regulatory framework for submersible operations or vessels of novel design.
“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 authors of the report noted. “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 stated that if OceanGate’s CEO and chief pilot had survived, the Marine Board of Investigation “would have recommended that the Commandant refer the matter to [the Department of Justice] for their consideration on whether to pursue a separate criminal investigation.”
In addition, the detailed report included 17 safety recommendations to avoid a future tragedy, including restricting the Oceanographic Research Vessel designations for submersibles and expanding federal and international requirements to all submersibles conducting scientific or commercial dives.
Documentary highlights OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush
The report was released two months after the documentary film Titan: The OceanGate Submersible Disaster debuted in June on Netflix. The project takes a close look at Rush and the brazen CEO’s quest to transform adventure tourism.
The documentary includes interviews with former OceanGate staff including David Lochridge, a submersible pilot and OceanGate’s former director of marine operations, who was fired after voicing concerns.
