Why This story does not end with that “catastrophic implosion”. We could almost say that it begins. Unfortunately it has been the end for the five people who ventured down to the remains of the Titanic in that bathyscaphe. But the open investigations and the more than possible complaints against the company invite us to think that this is only the beginning. Tasks in the depths of the ocean can continue for weeks or months. And the work in the offices to find out exactly what happened and the responsibilities can last for years. For that reason, the future of OceanGate is filled with dark clouds.
But what are they up against at the moment? Who is investigating what happened with the Titan? Whose responsibility is it to determine who is responsible?Is there tension and nervousness among the countries that have collaborated in the search?
At this moment there is three open investigations. One by the United States Coast Guard. Another by the Canada Transportation Safety Board and another, internally, by the company itself. They are the first, because very soon the demands of the families of the deceased and the fight with the insurance companies will arrive. The future of the Titanic submersible venture promises to become a championship imbroglio.
Let’s see one by one which are the three investigations that are already open:
The United States Coast Guard investigation
This Sunday it was announced Coast Guard: they opened an investigation to determine what could have caused the implosion of the Titan submersible. In addition, the person leading the investigation, Captain Jason Neubauer, assured that recovery operations on the seabed were continuing and that they had mapped the crash site. He gave no timeframe for ending the investigations, but convening the Board of Maritime Investigation is the highest level of investigation the US Coast Guard can carry out.
“My main objective is to prevent a similar event by formulating the necessary recommendations to improve the security of the maritime environment throughout the world”, declared Neubauer. The Coast Guard, with the conclusions reached, may make recommendations to prosecutors for the application of civil or criminal sanctions, as appropriate.
The United States Navy is also involved in the search efforts, essential to finding answers. But it has already announced that it will not use the ‘Flyaway’ salvage equipment, capable of bringing an intact Titan to the surface. The Navy would only use that ocean recovery system if there were chunks large enough to require its use.
“The work is focused on helping to map the debris field in preparation for recovery attempts and to support investigative actions. Efforts to mobilize equipment such as the Deep Ocean Salvage Flyaway System have been suspended.”said a Navy official.
The Canadians’ Investigation
The announcement from the Canadians came a day before the one from the United States. On Saturday, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada confirmed that an investigation was being opened into the loss of the Titan submersible.
“We are doing a security investigation in Canada as it was a Canadian flagged vessel that left a Canadian port and was involved in this incident, although in international waters,” explained Kathy Fox, president of the Transportation board. “Other agencies may choose to conduct investigations and that is up to them.” Statements that reveal some unease about who is responsible for determining how the tragedy between the United States and Canada occurred.
The Polar Prince left Newfoundland on June 16, towing the ill-fated Titan. There were 41 people on board, 17 crew members and 24 others, including the five who died when the Titan imploded.
Fox said he understands the international interest in the rescue and that Canada will share the information it collects with other agencies, such as the US National Transportation Safety Board and the US Coast Guard, but “within the limits of Canadian law”. Voice recordings and witness statements are protected by the country’s law, he added. “Our investigation will go where the evidence leads us. We do not want to duplicate efforts. We want to collaborate.”
In fact, other countries collaborate in the investigation, specifically those that participated in the search. Along with the United States and Canada, the Investigation Office on French Maritime Events and Great Britain Maritime Accident Investigation Division.
The company itself and the legal mess
The company has also started an internal investigation. Guillermo Sohnleina minority shareholder, has declared that “in the coming weeks” OceanGate’s board of directors will analyze “the survival” of the company”, whose future is “uncertain”. When asked if the company would assume responsibility for negligence after the catastrophe of the Titan, said that “I was not authorized to respond” and that he did not know if the company’s insurance would take care of an event like that.
The way general research is done is made difficult by the fact that the world of deep sea exploration is not clearly regulated. It is likely that a key part of any investigation is carried out by the company itself.. But it is also on the table that the disaster could have been caused by an unconventional design and the refusal of its creator to submit it to independent controls. which are standard in the industry. OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, who was piloting the Titan when it imploded, went so far as to complain that regulations can stifle progress. “Bringing an outside entity up to speed on every innovation before it’s tested in the real world is anathema to rapid innovation,” Rush wrote on his company’s website.
The Titan was not registered as a US vessel nor with the international agencies that regulate security. And it wasn’t rated by a maritime industry group that sets standards in things like hull construction.
demands
To all this we must add the judicial mess that will begin very soon. The families will most likely sue the company. Maybe the insurers too. Something they’re used to at OceanGate, though not to that level. In recent years they have already had to face several lawsuits for missions postponed due to technical failures or inclement weather, which prevented the descent to the remains of the Titanic. But the scenario that arises after the implosion of the Titan is unprecedented.
Of course, all the passengers signed a document before traveling in the submersible that said this: “A trip in an experimental submersible ship, not approved by any regulatory body, which can result in physical damage, disability, emotional trauma or death.” We see it in this video, shared on Twitter by CNN contributor Frida Ghitis.
“The word ‘death’ is mentioned three times on the first page of the document, you never get it out of your head,” recalls writer Mike Reiss, a writer and producer, in statements to the BBC. “You sign a disclaimer that lists one after another the ways you could die on the trip,” he explains. Reiss made the same trip last year. “You know exactly what you’re getting into,” he says.
During its 14 years of existence, OceanGate has completed more than 200 missions in the Pacific, the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. In 2019, it received $19.3 million in investments. His hook had strength: “It is not necessary to travel to space to contemplate alien worlds”, they advertised. Just last year 28 personas they descended with their battered bathyscaphe to the remains of the most famous wreck.
