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WATCH: Heartbreaking New Footage From OceanGate Sub Tragedy Released
The U.S. Coast Guard on Friday released heartbreaking footage showing support staff of the fatal OceanGate submarine trying desperately to interpret last-minute messages from its crew, including the wife of CEO Stockton Rush.
With a radio in hand, Wendy Weil could be heard asking a colleague about a “bang” overheard on transmissions coming from the sub, which crumpled into oblivion miles beneath the surface of the North Atlantic Ocean. Rush was on board to accompany several guests to the bottom of the ocean, where they hoped to view wreckage from the Titanic.
A spokesman with the Coast Guard confirmed that the noise heard by Weil was the sound of the submarine imploding after its carbon fiber layers began to peel back, a process called delamination.
“Delamination at dive 80 was the beginning of the end,” said US Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Katie Williams, referring to a previous near-calamitous incident. “Everyone that stepped onboard the Titan after dive 80 was risking their life.”
While an investigation into the fatal incident remains ongoing, what is known is that the OceanGate submarine Titan had deployed for its 80th dive on July 15, 2022, at which point investigators say delamination was first noticed. Despite the incident, Rush pushed on with more expeditions in the following year. Court filings following Rush’s death indicate that battery problems inside the submarine led to a replacement effort that damaged exterior components, WBUR previously reported.
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Others killed that day were Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a French deep-sea explorer and Titanic expert; Hamish Harding, a British businessman; Shahzada Dawood, a Pakistani-British businessman; and Dawood’s son, Suleman.
Since the accident, a number of prominent maritime experts have come forward saying they had warned Rush about his over-reliance on carbon fiber materials, which are vastly lighter than traditional metal hulls but unable to remain in use for nearly as long.
Rush is alleged to have ignored most of those concerns, arguing that excessive safety protocols were hindering deep-sea exploration. He had failed to obtain a certification for Titan.
In March 2024, a black box from the submarine was made public, containing audio after implosion, which investigators say was instantaneous.
Rescuers claimed they 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.
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.
Search efforts were called off when wreckage from the Titan was discovered laying not far from the Titanic’s final resting place. Ten days after the submarine had vanished, officials confirmed that they had recovered likely human remains from inside the wreckage.
