Their bodies may never be found, Admiral Mauger said
All five passengers aboard the missing submersible Titan have been confirmed dead after the vessel suffered a “catastrophic implosion” at sea.
Tributes have poured in for British billionaire Hamish Harding, 58, Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son Suleman Dawood, 19, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, and Stockton Rush, 61, following the devastating incident.
Their families have expressed “profound grief” and paid tribute to their exploration endeavours.
Debris was found in the search for the missing Titanic sub on Thursday afternoon (GMT) on the seabed about 500m from the bow of the Titanic wreck.
It was analysed and confirmed to belong to the Titan, and family members were informed there had been no survivors.
The bodies of the five deceased crew members may never be found, Admiral Mauger said.
“This is an incredibly unforgiving environment down there on the sea floor and the debris is consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel.
“I can only imagine what this has been like for them and I hope that this discovery provides some solace during this difficult time.”
An OceanGate spokesperson confirmed that the five crew members had “sadly been lost” in a statement to The Independent.
“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.”
The Titan submersible vanished 105 minutes after launching from the Polar Prince icebreaker research ship about 900 miles off the coast of Cape Cod on Sunday morning.
The Titan’s twin communication systems — texts and electronic pings — suddenly stopped communicating with the support vessel, and no further sign of life was detected until Thursday’s grim discovery.
A sweeping search effort involving Canadian Boeing P-8 Poseidon and C-130 Hercules reconnaissance aircraft, 10 vessels and underwater sonar buoys had been combing an area of the North Atlantic Ocean twice the size of Connecticut for the past several days.
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