A “debris field” has been discovered by an underwater robot searching near the wreck of the Titanic for a missing submersible with five people on board, rescuers said on Thursday.
The development came after rescuers insisted that the multinational mission to locate the craft was still focused on finding the crew alive despite fears that the vessel’s oxygen may have run out.
The US Coast Guard has not confirmed whether the debris belonged to the small tourist sub, lost somewhere in a vast swathe of the North Atlantic between the ocean’s surface and more than two miles below.
“Experts within the unified command are evaluating the information,” the US Coast Guard said in a tweet.
The coast guard said the debris field was found “within the search area by an ROV (remotely operated vehicle) near the Titanic.” It did not give more details but said it would hold a press briefing at 1900 GMT in Boston.
But marine scientist and oceanographer David Mearns, who specialises in deep water search and recovery operations, said the development indicated a “catastrophic failure,” probably “an implosion.”
“They don’t use phrases like ‘debris field’ unless there’s no chance of a recovery of the men alive. A debris field implies a breakup of the submersible,” he told Sky News.
“The only saving grace about that is that it would have been immediate, literally in milliseconds, and the men would have had no idea what was happening,” added Mearns, who was friends with two of those onboard.
The minivan-sized Titan, operated by US-based OceanGate Expeditions, began its descent at 1200 GMT on Sunday but lost contact with its support ship.
The submersible set off with 96 hours of air, according to the company, which means the oxygen would be exhausted by Thursday, assuming the Titan is still intact. Precisely when depends on factors such as whether the craft still has power and how calm those on board are, experts say.
Titan was carrying British billionaire Hamish Harding and Pakistani tycoon Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, who also have British citizenship. OceanGate Expeditions charges $250,000 for a seat on the sub.
Rescuers and relatives of the Titan’s five occupants took hope when the US Coast Guard said on Wednesday that Canadian search planes had recorded undersea noises using sonar buoys earlier that day and on Tuesday.
Two more robots were deployed Thursday in the hunt for the Titan sub, lost somewhere in a vast swathe of the North Atlantic between the ocean’s surface and more than two miles below.
As that possible deadline for oxygen exhaustion passed, US Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger said rescuers were “fully committed” to search operations.
“People’s will to live really needs to be accounted for as well. We’re going to continue searching,” he told NBC’s ‘Today’ show.
A surge of assets and experts have joined the operation in the past day, and sonar has picked up unidentified underwater noises.
Organisers of the response — which includes US and Canadian military planes, coast guard ships and teleguided robots — are focusing their efforts close to the sounds.
The noises, heard on Tuesday and Wednesday and which have been described as sounding like “banging,” raised hopes that the passengers are still alive, though experts have not been able to confirm their source.
The French research ship Atalante deployed an unmanned robot able to search at depths of up to 6,000 metres below water on Thursday, the US Coast Guard tweeted.
Experts have called the Victor 6000 “the main hope” for an underwater rescue.
The Canadian vessel Horizon Arctic also deployed a robot that had already reached the ocean floor and begun its search.
Mauger has also said that vessels carrying medical staff and a decompression chamber are en route to the area.
Ships and planes have scoured 10,000 square miles of surface water — roughly the size of the US state of Massachusetts — for the vessel.
The Titanic’s watery grave is situated 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, and more than two miles below the surface of the North Atlantic.
Experts say that even if the submersible is found, raising it from deep water would be challenging.
The Navy has sent a specialised winch system for lifting heavy objects from extreme depths along with other equipment and personnel, while the
Pentagon has deployed three C-130 aircraft and three C-17s.
The Titanic hit an iceberg and sank in 1912 during its maiden voyage from England to New York with 2,224 passengers and crew on board. More than 1,500 people died.
It was found in 1985 and remains a lure for nautical experts and underwater tourists.
The pressure at that depth as measured in atmospheres is 400 times what it is at sea level.
Tom Zaller toured the Titanic 23 years ago in a submersible much like the missing one.
“You’re sending a very small vessel two and a half miles down, which is incredibly complicated and technical,” he said. “It’s just this very seemingly unsophisticated sphere.”
Zaller has known Nargeolet for decades and was in touch with Rush before he embarked on Sunday’s tour.
“I was in that sub for 12 hours with everything working fine,” Zaller said.
“They’ve been there for almost four days. I just can’t imagine.”
In 2018, OceanGate Expeditions’ former director of marine operations David Lochridge alleged in a lawsuit that he had been fired after raising concerns about the company’s “experimental and untested design” of Titan.
