OceanGate suspends operations after Titan disaster

The owner and operator of the Titan submersible is suspending all exploration and commercial operations after the vessel imploded, killing five.

The Titan submersible beginning a descent. Picture: AFP.

OceanGate Expeditions, the owner and operator of the Titan submersible, said it is suspending all exploration and commercial operations after five people were killed during its expedition to the Titanic wreckage last month.

The company said its operations were suspended in a brief statement on its website. OceanGate didn’t immediately respond Thursday to a request for more information.

Stockton Rush, the founder and chief executive of OceanGate, died on the submersible. The other victims were Paul-Henry Nargeolet, who was considered a leading authority on the Titanic; Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, members of one of Pakistan’s richest families; and Hamish Harding, a British aviator and explorer.

The US Coast Guard said the vessel is believed to have suffered a catastrophic implosion while travelling to the Titanic’s wreckage. The Titan lost contact with the outside world shortly after the dive began, setting off an urgent search that transfixed millions for days.

A top secret military acoustic detection system heard what the U.S. Navy suspected to be the Titan’s implosion shortly after the submersible disappeared, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

Last week, wreckage from the Titan, including presumed human remains, was handed over to the U.S. Coast Guard. The incident is under investigation.

Dow Jones