OceanGate submersible disaster: Survivor describes incident before catastrophic implosion

Ross, a former employee of OceanGate's submersible Titan, recounted a harrowing incident that occurred before the fatal implosion in June 2023.

Ross, one of the passengers and a former employee of OceanGate's Titan submersible, recounted a harrowing incident that occurred during a previous dive before the fatal implosion in June 2023. Ross explained that there was “nothing to hold on to” inside the cramped submersible. During the dive, OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, who was piloting the submarine and tragically died in the subsequent implosion, crashed into the rear bulkhead. This caused chaos inside the small vessel, with Ross and the other four passengers stumbling around in the tight space.

“I ended up landing on the rear bulkhead,” Ross recalled. “One passenger was hanging upside down and the other two managed to get stuck in the bow end cap.”

Although no one was injured in the incident, Ross described the experience as “uncomfortable and unpleasant,” noting that it took at least an hour to clear up the situation. The cramped conditions made the situation even more difficult, and Stockton Rush was visibly “dismayed” by the mishap.

The last dive: Visiting the wreck of the Titanic

On June 18, 2023, Stockton Rush and four passengers embarked on Titan's final dive – a mission to observe the wreck of the RMS Titanic, located 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. Passengers included British explorer Hamish Harding, French submarine expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani-British businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman.

Just two hours after the submersible began its descent, contact with the surface was lost, triggering a massive search and rescue operation. For days, the world waited anxiously for news, hoping that the submarine had simply lost power and was drifting in the depths of the ocean. But tragically, it soon became clear that the Titan had met a catastrophic fate.

Catastrophic implosion: what went wrong?

Within days of the search, debris from the Titan was discovered about 500 meters from the bow of the Titanic. The submersible had suffered a devastating implosion under the immense pressure of the North Atlantic at a depth of more than three kilometers. Experts believe that the victims died instantly due to the sheer force of the implosion. The discovery of the wreckage dashed all hopes of a successful rescue and confirmed the tragic outcome of the mission.

Legal consequences: Nargeolet's family files suit

Following the disaster, the family of Paul-Henri Nargeolet has filed a lawsuit against OceanGate, seeking $50 million for negligence. The lawsuit alleges that OceanGate failed to take adequate precautions to ensure the safety of passengers, which ultimately led to the fatal implosion. Nargeolet, a respected submarine expert, had extensive experience in deep-sea research, and his family is now seeking justice for the tragedy.

The Titan's ill-fated voyage was meant to provide a closer look at one of the world's most famous shipwrecks – the Titanic. The Titanic struck an iceberg and sank on its maiden voyage from England to New York in 1912 with over 2,200 passengers and crew on board. More than 1,500 people lost their lives in the disaster, and the shipwreck lies on the seabed today, serving as a solemn reminder of the tragic event. The Titan's mission to observe the wreck has added another chapter to the Titanic's legacy, marked by the loss of five more lives.

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