OceanGate’s website is still advertising two future expeditions to view the wreckage of the Titanic over two weeks after five people were killed in a catastrophic implosion of the company’s Titan submersible on June 18. The deep-sea vessel and human remains were pulled from the Atlantic 10 days later.
A page titled “Titan Expedition – Explore the Titanic” was still available on July 4, offering a chance to dive into the shipwreck in the company’s submersible via its expensive diving trips.
“Intrepid travelers will sail from Canada’s Atlantic coast for an eight-day expedition to dive on the iconic wreck that lies 380 miles offshore and 3,800 meters below the surface,” the page stated. “Your dive will provide not only a thrilling and unique travel experience but also help the scientific community learn more about the wreck and the deep ocean environment.”
The website, which did not appear to have been updated following the unfortunate event, stated that the mission scheduled for June 2023 is “currently underway” and that another mission scheduled for June 12–20, 2024, will be followed by an excursion scheduled for June 21–29, 2024.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a renowned French deep-sea explorer who was later reported to have perished when the Titan imploded, was listed in the section of the page that specified who may join potential passengers on the future expeditions.
The tragedy also allegedly claimed the lives of Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, a British-Pakistani billionaire businessman, and Hamish Harding, a British businessman.
Financier claims OceanGate CEO is just obsessed with Titanic and doesn’t care about boosting deep-sea tourism
According to Las Vegas businessman Jay Bloom, Rush only started the extreme tourism project to pay for his Titanic compulsion. Bloom almost purchased tickets for two aboard the Titan for $500,000, but he decided against it after his son, whom he was planning to take on the trip, raised concerns about safety.
“Rush wasn’t really looking to build a tourism business to the Titanic. He wanted to research and document the decay of the ship over time,” he added, “Multiple dives to the site costs a lot of money. A way to finance his scientific observation was to bring observers down with him.”
In February, as he was debating buying two seats on the sub for himself and his son Sean, 20, Bloom posted text message exchanges between Rush and himself on Facebook.After researching the “perceived threats to the vessel,” he revealed to Rush that his son was worried about the trip’s danger. He even expressed his worry to the CEO about the prospect of a sperm whale or a giant squid attacking the sub and compromising the hull.
“Yeah, very stupid the pressure is over 100 million pounds no sperm whale or squid is ever going to be able to mess with the sub,” was Rush’s reply. (Related: OceanGate Titan submarine SINKS during voyage to Titanic because racist CEO Stockton Rush didn’t want to hire “50-year-old white guys.”)
He also noted that there was no training ahead of his scheduled submersible trip. According to him, the only instructions were: “Just climb through the hatch and get in” and to not wear footwear inside the ocean vessel.
However, the trip was expensively priced on the website and came with a single submersible dive, private lodging, all necessary training, expedition gear, and all meals.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login