New photo shows wrecked Titan submersible on ocean floor as it’s revealed it had over 100 equipment issues in years leading up to fatal implosion
The US Coast Guard detailed more than 100 issues that took place in the years leading up to the Titan submersible’s implosion that killed five people last year — as officials revealed that among the last messages from the vessel was the chilling communication, “All good.”
During Monday’s public hearing over the OceanGate wreck, investigators revealed that Titan suffered dozens of problems during preඣvious trips, including 70 equipment issues in 2021 and 48 issues in 2022,
Tony Nissen, OceanGate’s former engineering director, claimed that whenever he or other staffers would bring up the issues with CEO Stockton Rush, who was among those killed in the implosion, the chief would brush their concerns aside after heated arguments.
“Most people would eventually back down from🍎 Stockton,” Nissen told iꦡnvestigators.
“Stockton would fight for what he wanted and wouldn’t give an♕ inch much at all,” he added.
Nissen revealed that when he was first hired by Stockton in 2016, he was not aware he was being tasked with developing a submersible to reach the depths of the Titanic, adding that there were only about ten people working in OceanGate at the t♏ime.
The engineer added that durinꦬg one test mission in 2018, the Titan was hit by a lightning bolt that likely compromised the hull🧜.
After taking apart the craft and warning Stockton about the issue, the CEO allegedly told him, “It would be okay” — meaning the hull was not included in the repairs at the time, Nissen said.
Th🍸e engineer said he was eventually fired in June 2019 because he refused to sign off on a July 2019 expedition, telling Stockton that the hull mus𝓡t not be used.
Investigators also revealed that during the winter before the 2023 Titanic voyage, the෴ submersible had been stored wiಞthout protection in a freezing facility in Newfoundland.
Less than four weeks before the i🅰ll-fated trip, the submersible was also found “partially sunk” during a test 🎃run.
The revelations are the first in a seri🃏es of interviews with 10 former OceanGate employees and 14 other witnesses set to testify before the 𝄹Coast Guard over the Titan implosion that made headlines last year.
The hearing aims to “uncover the facts surrounding the incident and ꧑develop recommendations to prevent similar tragedies in the future,” the Coast Guard said in a statement.
The hearing will likely focus on the scrutiny levied against Stockton and OceanGate, which have been accused of skirting safety regulations and concerns from industry leaders ꦅwhile developing the Titan sub for deep sea trips to the Titan wreck.
Along with Stockton, the implosion killed British adventurer Hamish Harding, French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and P💜akistani father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood.
OceanGates former finance director Bonnie Carl and former contractor Tym Catterson are a𓄧lso expected to test𓆏ify on Monday. ;
