Chilling Audio From The OceanGate Titan Submarine Tragedy Has Been Released

A haunting audio recording that gave rescuers hope as they searched for the crew of the OceanGate submarine at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean last year has been released to the public.

After the small craft lost contact with the surface while traveling to the wreck of the Titanic last summer, rescuers heard banging noises reverberating in 30-minute intervals. The recording was widely reported at the time and gave both rescuers and the public hope that the crew could be rescued.

An upcoming British documentary from Channel 5, “The Titan Sub Disaster: Minute by Minute,” released the audio to the public for the first time, which sounds like a person periodically knocking against metal.

The documentary, which details the rescue attempt, also shared reactions from rescuers when the audio was first heard. “It could be somebody knocking. The symmetry between those knockings is very unusual,” former Navy Submarine Captain Ryan Ramsey said in the documentary.

“It’s rhythmic, it’s like somebody is making that sound, and the fact that it is repeated is really unusual,” he added. The noises were first picked up by the Canadian Navy around 11:30 p.m. on June 20, while the U.S. Navy confirmed that it had picked up the same sounds the following morning.

The reports generated hope that the five passengers could be rescued at the time, though officials cautioned that the sound could have been made by the ocean or another ship.

Search efforts were tragically unsuccessful, as the rescue was called off when the team’s lead submersible discovered wreckage of the submarine not far from the Titanic wreck. Ten days after the submarine had vanished, officials confirmed that they had recovered likely human remains from inside the wreckage.

Investigators believe the sub imploded roughly one hour and 45 minutes into its descent at a depth of roughly 12,000 feet below sea level. It is believed that the immense pressure caused by the implosion killed everyone on board in a matter of milliseconds.

The five victims were OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, 61, French Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, British billionaire Hamish Harding, 58, prominent Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his 19-year-old son, Sulaiman Dawood.