Daughter of OceanGate victim still begs for answers from company on 1-year anniversary of Titan subdisaster

Loved ones are still grieving a year after the Titan submarine tragedy claimed five lives – and still wondering what went wrong.

The grieving daughter of 77-year-old Paul-Henri Nergeolet – known to friends as Mr Titanic for his encyclopedic knowledge of the ill-fated ship – said she has not heard from OceanGate, the company behind the calamity, since she lost her ship. father a year ago.

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OceanGate closed just weeks after its CEO, Stockton Rush, and the submarine’s four passengers died late last spring.

Sidonie Nargeolet, 40, spoke about her late father and the questions that remain surrounding his death in a rare interview with 60 Minutes Australia.

All were crushed and killed instantly when the experimental submarine imploded at a depth of about 12,500 feet.

She claimed the defunct company never updated her with the findings of any investigations into the sinking or even apologized for what happened.

“[I’ve heard] none of them [OceanGate]. No condolences, no ‘we’re sorry’. Nothing,” she said. 60 Minutes Australia.

The other travelers who lost their lives on June 18, 2023 include British billionaire Hamish Harding, 58, British-Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his 19-year-old son Suleman.

Sidonie said she found it “extraordinary” that the company had not contacted her or other families.

AN UPDATE FROM THE US COAST GUARD

While OceanGate has not made a public statement about the deaths since last summer, the U.S. Coast Guard made a statement about its investigation last week.

Authorities said they are still “actively investigating” the factors that led to the catastrophe, according to Fox News.

“The investigation into the implosion of the submersible Titan is a complex and ongoing effort,” said the Coast Guard Maritime Board Investigation Chairman. Already are Neubauer.

“We are working closely with our national and international partners to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the incident.”

The Coast Guard originally said it expected the investigation to be completed by this point, but explained in the update that extenuating circumstances extended its timeline.

“We are grateful for the international and interagency cooperation that has been vital in the recovery, preservation and forensic testing of evidence from a remote and extremely deep offshore region,” Neubauer said.

“MBI is committed to ensuring that we fully understand the factors that led to this tragedy in order to prevent similar occurrences in the future.”

“As the one-year anniversary approaches, MBI extends its deepest condolences to the families and friends of the five individuals who lost their lives during the incident,” they added.

MEMORIES STILL PAINFUL

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Wearing a T-shirt with an image of a deep-sea diver on the front, Sidonie held back tears as she recounted what it was like to learn of her father’s fate.

The submarine began having problems shortly after beginning its descent and then abruptly lost contact with the ship on the surface.

Neither the ship’s crew nor their loved ones knew what had happened to the submarine during this period.

“In a way I had hope, very small, but that he was alive. In a way it’s more difficult because it’s hope for nothing more than four days [I thought] he was still alive,” Sidonie said.

The missing The submarine quickly caught the world’s attention when experts explained that the lost divers would have a maximum of 96 hours of oxygen inside the small submarine.

But after the hours began to pass and several marine observers reported recording a loud, unfamiliar sound in the search area, hope began to fade.

The 96-hour air limit passed and rescue teams began finding fragments of wreckage just meters from the Titanic’s ghostly skeleton, thousands of meters underground.

How the Titan Tragedy Unfolded

A year ago, five men dived beneath the surface of the North Atlantic in a homemade submarine, hoping to explore the wreck of the Titnaic.

But what was supposed to be a short trip turned into days of agony when the doomed Titan disappeared without a trace on June 18, 2023.

The daring mission took months to prepare – and almost didn’t happen due to harsh weather conditions in Newfoundland, Canada.

In a now chilling Facebook post, passenger Hamish Harding wrote: “Due to Newfoundland’s worst winter in 40 years, this mission will likely be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023.

“A weather window has just opened and we’re going to try a dive tomorrow.”

It would be his last Facebook post.

The next morning, he and four others – led by Stockton Rush – began the 12,5000 foot descent towards the bottom of the Atlantic.

But as it descended deeper, the vessel lost all contact with its surface mothership, the Polar Prince.

This triggered a frantic four-day search for signs of life, with the hunt taking over the entire world.

There was hope that, by some miracle, the crew was alive and desperately waiting to be saved.

But this raised fears that rescuers were racing against time, as the submarine only had a 96-hour supply of oxygen when it set sail, which would be dwindling fast.

So when audio of crashing sounds was detected underwater, it inspired hope that the victims were trapped and signaling for rescue.

It was heartbreakingly discovered that the pounding noises were likely noises from the ocean or other search ships, the U.S. Navy determined.

Countries around the world mobilized their resources to help in the search, and within days the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Odysseus was sent to the location of the ghostly wreckage of the Titanic.

The plan was for the ROV to connect to the submarine and take it to 10,000 feet, where it would meet another ROV before rising to the surface.

But any hopes of a phenomenal rescue were dashed when Odysseus found a piece of wreckage from the submarine about 500 meters from the Titanic.

The rescue mission tragically became a life-saving task, and the devastated families of those on board received the devastating news.

It was confirmed by the US Coast Guard that the submarine suffered a “catastrophic implosion”.

An investigation into the disaster is ongoing.

OceanGate has suspended all its operations.

WHAT WAS THE TITAN SUBMARINE?

The Titan was a superlight submarine specially made from carbon fiber and titanium.

An eight-day excursion on the 20-foot-long ship had a starting price of $250,000, according to an archived version of the company’s website.

The company specializes in offering expeditions to rarely seen locations miles below the ocean’s surface – like the wreckage of the Titanic.

Its late CEO said his main concern was that the submarine – created by OceanGate but driven by a game controller – would become stuck underwater.

“What worries me most are the things that will keep me from getting to the surface,” Rush told CBS.

“Protrusions, fishing nets, entanglement hazards.”

“We ran everything with this game controller,” he explained, adding that there were also several Camper World LED lights installed inside.

The interviewee asked Rush if the submarine had “elements of MacGyvery jerryriggedness.”

He responded that the pressure vessel was created in collaboration with Boeing, NASA and the University of Washington.

“That part, once the pressure vessel is – you’re sure it’s not going to collapse on everyone, everything else can fail” said Rush.

“It doesn’t matter. Your thrusters can work. Your lights can work. All of these things can fail. You’ll still be safe.”

“You know, there is a limit. You know, at some point, security is pure waste,” he said.

“I don’t think it’s very dangerous. If you look at submersible activity over the last three decades, there hasn’t even been a serious injury, let alone a fatality.”

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COOLING AUDIO

According to US Navy officials, “an acoustic anomaly consistent with an implosion” was heard just hours after the submarine lost contact with its main ship.

A U.S. Coast Guard spokesman later said the debris found in the search was “consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber.”

“An ROV, or remotely operated vehicle, from the ship Horizon Arctic discovered the tail cone of the submersible Titan approximately 1,600 feet off the bow of the Titanic,” Rear Admiral John Mauger said at a news conference in Boston, days after the sub’s disappearance. .

The ROV later encountered additional debris. In consultation with Unified Command experts, the debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber,” Mauger added.

“Upon this determination, we immediately notified families.”

“In the name of U.S Coast Guard and the entire unified command, I extend my deepest condolences to the families. I can only imagine what this has been like for them.”

“And I hope this discovery provides some comfort during this difficult time,” he said.