Titanic Submersible Crew Believed To Be Dead After “Catastrophic Implosion”

Boston: The Titan submersible, operated by OceanGate Expeditions, has been imploded in the Atlantic Ocean, news reports have confirmed.

All five people aboard a submersible missing near the wreck of the Titanic died — likely in an instant — after their vessel suffered what the US Coast Guard said Thursday was a “catastrophic implosion” in the ocean depths.

The somber announcement ended a multinational search-and-rescue operation that captivated the world since the tiny tourist craft went missing in the North Atlantic four days ago.

The solemn announcement from Oceangate came hours after rescuers said a “debris field” had been discovered following a dayslong search — adding to fears that, even if the vessel were still intact, its oxygen may have run out.

“We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost,” Oceangate said in a statement.

Rear Admiral John Mauger told reporters in Boston that analysis showed debris found on the seafloor, 1,600 feet (500 meters) from the bow of the Titanic, was consistent with the implosion of the sub’s pressure chamber.

The 21-foot (6.5-meter) tourist craft lost communication with its mothership less than two hours into its trip to see the remains of the Titanic, which sits more than four kilometres below the surface of the North Atlantic.