Large but difficult searches continue on Wednesday in the North Atlantic to find alive the five occupants of the submersible which disappeared during an exploration of the wreck of the Titanic, and whose oxygen reserves are in danger of running out on Thursday.
“This is an extremely difficult time for the families of the crew members who disappeared aboard the Titan,” US Coast Guard Captain Jamie Frederick said at a press briefing in Boston.
“We have to remain optimistic and have hope,” he added. “Sometimes you’re in a position where you have to make a tough decision. We’re not there yet.”
But time is running out. Breathable air supplies should run out on Thursday aboard the Titan, a small deep-sea explorer from the private company OceanGate Expeditions, missing since Sunday.
Sounds detected underwater Tuesday by Canadian P-3 planes in the search area raised hope and directed the armada of rescuers dispatched to the scene.
But “I can’t tell you what those noises are,” Captain Frederick said Wednesday after research by remotely operated underwater vehicles and a sonar-equipped surface vessel.
Aerial surveillance using C-130 or P3 aircraft, ships equipped with underwater robots: the means deployed in particular by the American and Canadian armies continue to arrive at the site where the Polar Prince, the ship of which is stationed departed the submersible Titan.
The Atlante, a French Ifremer research vessel equipped with a robot capable of diving to the wreck of the Titanic, which lies nearly 4,000 meters deep, must also be deployed.
“The location of the research, 1,450 km east of Cape Cod (on the northeast coast of the United States, editor’s note) and 640 km southeast of Saint John of Newfoundland (in Canada) , makes it exceptionally difficult to mobilize large quantities of equipment quickly,” explained Captain Frederick.
The surface search area covers 20,000 square kilometers.
An American, a Frenchman, a Briton and two Pakistani-Britons dived into the abyss on Sunday aboard the Titan, a submersible designed for five people and about 6.5 meters long.
Contact with the craft was lost less than two hours after its departure. Tuesday noon, the US Coast Guard had warned that there were “about 40 hours of breathable air” on board.
Since Sunday and the start of research, details implicating OceanGate have emerged, the company being singled out for potential negligence in the safety of its underwater tourism device.
A 2018 complaint seen by AFP says a former company executive, David Lochridge, was fired after raising serious doubts about the safety of the submersible.
According to this former director of marine operations, a porthole at the front of the device was designed to withstand the pressure suffered at 1,300 m depth, and not at 4,000 m.
The boss of OceanGate, the American Stockton Rush, is aboard his Titan.
He dived alongside wealthy British businessman Hamish Harding (58), French Titanic specialist Paul-Henri Nargeolet (77) and Pakistani tycoon Shahzada Dawood (48) and his son Suleman (19), who both also have British nationality.
For 250,000 dollars, they engaged in an exploration of the remains of what was one of the greatest maritime disasters of the 20th century.
“Every hour that passes is more agonizing,” founder and director of the Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg, western France, Bernard Cauvin, who worked with Paul-Henri Nargeolet, told AFP.
“I know his professionalism, including in crisis management. Psychologically and technically, he knows how to manage everything, he has experienced many others,” he added.
The Titanic sank on its maiden voyage in 1912 after crashing into an iceberg, killing nearly 1,500 passengers and crew.
Since the discovery of the wreck in 1985, scientists, treasure seekers and tourists have visited it, thus maintaining the myth.
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22/06/2023 00:51:39 – Boston (United States) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
