U.S. Coast Guard confirms deaths of five people aboard Titan sub

The United States Coast Guard is confirming the deaths of the five people aboard a submersible that has been missing since Sunday near the wreck of the Titanic.

During a media conference Thursday, Coast Guard Rear Adm. John Mauger said a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) found a debris field about 1,600 feet off the bow of the Titanic.

Mauger said the debris was the tail cone of the Titan submersible, and additional debris was also located.

“In consultation with experts from within the unified command, the debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber. Upon this determination, we immediately notified the families,” Mauger said.

“I can only imagine what this has been like for them, and I hope that this discovery provides some solace during this difficult time.”

He said the Coast Guard immediately contacted the families of the five men who were on board to offer its condolences.

Searchers had been using ROVs to scour the ocean floor for signs of the Titan, a submersible used by OceanGate Expeditions to visit the wreck of the Titanic. The sub and its five passengers had been missing since Sunday.

On board the sub were pilot and OceanGate executive Stockton Rush along with passengers Shahazada Dawood, his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding and Paul-Henri Nargeolet.

On Wednesday, a Canadian plane assisting with the search efforts heard an underwater sound that could’ve come from humans. Whether the sounds came from someone on board the sub was never determined.

ROVs are outfitted with cameras and travel to depths many other vessels can’t and have been used for undersea exploration for decades. The Titanic wreckage is located at a depth of 12,500 feet in the North Atlantic waters.

–With files from The Canadian Press