Major North American marine safety agencies, including the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the U.S. Coast Guard, the Canadian Coast Guard, the Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), have initiated an investigation into the catastrophic failure of the submersible Titan. The incident, which occurred on June 18 during an attempt to visit the Titanic wreck site, resulted in the loss of four paying passengers and the sub’s owner.
While the operating company, owner, and chartered vessel were all Canadian, the U.S. Coast Guard has taken the lead role in the investigation. They will convene a Marine Board of Investigation, which represents their highest level of investigative priority. Captain Jason Neubauer, the lead investigator, announced during a press conference that the initial focus will be on recovering evidence from the seabed at the wreck site.
Over the weekend, investigators from the TSB and RCMP diverted the chartered research vessel Polar Prince, which served as the launch platform for the sub, to a secure dock in St. Johns for further inspection. Approximately twelve agents were seen boarding the vessel as part of the inspection process, according to witnesses cited by the New York Times.
The forensic analysis of the evidence collected is expected to take at least a year, following the pattern of previous investigations. The costs associated with this investigation will be added to the already substantial expenses incurred. The U.S. government has estimated that the search and rescue operation alone has cost them at least one million dollars. However, by federal law, these expenses cannot be recovered from the operator, despite their decision to operate the recreational craft without classification and their disregard for repeated safety warnings.
It has come to light that the search and rescue effort may have actually been a search and recovery mission from the outset. The U.S. Navy detected acoustic signals consistent with a catastrophic implosion on the day the sub went missing and promptly relayed this information to the U.S. Coast Guard. Nevertheless, the incident commander chose to launch a five-day, multi-agency search and rescue operation in a determined effort to save the lives on board.
As of Friday, subsea vessels equipped with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) were still present at the wreck site, collecting additional evidence related to the incident.
The joint inquiry by the five North American agencies will aim to determine the causes and contributing factors behind the Titan’s catastrophic failure, as well as to ascertain any potential lapses in safety protocols and regulatory compliance.
