'Badly Damaged' Bodies of Those on Imploded Titanic Sub Will Probably 'Never Be Recovered’

After a massive attempted search-and-rescue operation, the US Coast Guard (USCG) confirmed on Thursday that debris found on the ocean floor near the Titanic wreckage consisted of pieces of the missing OceanGate submersible, the Titan. All five people on board the Titan were presumed dead.

The bodies of the five people who had been on the ill-fated submersible that is believed to have imploded from a "catastrophic loss of pressure" during a deep-sea dive to the wreck of the Titanic will probably never be recovered, a former navy surgeon, Dr Dale Molé, is cited by a media report as saying.

After almost instantaneous death, the bodies would have been greatly damaged by the force of the submersible’s implosion, the former navy doctor has claimed.

"Much like an airplane flying into the side of a mountain at high speed, I doubt there are any human remains left to be recovered," Molé remarked.

The five people who had been descending to the wreck of the Titanic would fortunately not have suffered as the hull of the submersible would have ruptured so quickly that death would have been almost instantaneous, the expert said, adding that they would not have had time to realize what was happening. "Basically, alive one second and dead the next,” the retired Navy captain added.

Members of the Coast Guard watch as US Coast Guard Captain Jamie Frederick speaks during a press conference about the search efforts for the submersible that went missing near the wreck of the Titanic, at Coast Guard Base in Boston, Massachusetts, on June 20, 2023.

© AFP 2023 / JOSEPH PREZIOSO

When asked what the cause of death was for those inside the submersible if the hull ruptured, the medic suggested massive trauma.

“The pressure outside the hull would have been about 6,000 pounds per square inch whereas the pressure inside the passenger compartment was normal atmospheric pressure or about 14.7 pounds per square inch. So when the hull imploded it did so instantaneously and with massive force. It was essentially like an explosion, but the shock wave was directed inward instead of outward.”

The Titan submersible owned by OceanGate had been on a deep-sea dive to the wreck site of the iconic Titanic vessel on Sunday with five people on board. The aim of the expedition was to chronicle the deterioration of the Titanic and the ecosystem around it. However, contact with the submersible was lost 1 hour and 45 minutes after descent began, triggering a search-and-rescue operation.

The passengers on the sub were British businessman Hamish Harding, Pakistani investor Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet and OceanGate chief executive Stockton Rush.

Twitter screenshot showng photos of five people believed to be aboard the missing Oceangate submersible Titan that was surveying wreckage of the Titanic.

© Photo : Twitter

Rush had founded OceanGate in 2009, and had been overseeing the development of submersibles able to travel up to 20,000 feet below the ocean's surface.

OceanGate CEO and co-founder Stockton Rush on June 13, 2016, in Boston.

© AP Photo / Bill Sikes

The US Coast Guard (USCG) confirmed on Thursday that search crews using remotely operated vehicles found debris consistent with a catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber. They then found the Titan's nose cone located separately from the pressure hull, and a second, smaller debris field surrounding the other end of the pressure hull. All five people on board the Titan are presumed dead.

"These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world's oceans. Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time," OceanGate said in a statement.

Officials have not commented on whether efforts would be made to retrieve the remains of the five passengers.