The U.S. Coast Guard received pieces of the wreckage site of the Titan sub that imploded last week leaving five men dead, according to a release from the military branch on Wednesday.
“I am grateful for the coordinated international and interagency support to recover and preserve this vital evidence at extreme offshore distances and depths,” U.S. Coast Guard Chief Capt. Jason Neubauer said in a statement. “The evidence will provide investigators from several international jurisdictions with critical insights into the cause of this tragedy. There is still a substantial amount of work to be done to understand the factors that led to the catastrophic loss of the TITAN and help ensure a similar tragedy does not occur again.”
The evidence includes debris and “presumed human remains” that will be analyzed by the Marine Board of Investigation (MBI).
“United States medical professionals will conduct a formal analysis of presumed human remains that have been carefully recovered,” the agency said.
According to the Coast Guard, the wreckage was returned to shore to St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada, on Wednesday and will be transferred to the U.S. for further testing.
On board, the Titan were British explorer Hamish Harding, French submarine expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani-British tycoon Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, and Stockton Rush, CEO of the sub’s operator OceanGate Expeditions.
The passengers paid $250,000 each to participate in the voyage. The implosion of the Titan has raised questions about the safety of private undersea exploration operations. The Coast Guard also wants to use the investigation to improve the safety of submersibles.
Credit: PBS, CBS, Newsweek, CNA