(NewsNation) — The Titan submersible disaster that killed five on the way to the Titanic was “preventable,” the U.S. Coast Guard said in a report Tuesday.
The Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation report found OceanGate, which owned Titan, had safety procedures that were “critically flawed,” noting that the core of the failures inside the company came down to “glaring disparities” between their safety protocols and actual practices.
Titan’s design, inspection processes were ‘inadequate’
Investigators determined that the main contributing factors were the submersible’s “inadequate design, certification, maintenance, and inspection process.”
Investigators also cited OceanGate’s culture of downplaying, ignoring and even falsifying key safety information to improve its reputation and evade scrutiny from regulators. OceanGate ignored “red flags” and had a “toxic workplace culture,” while its mission was hindered by lack of domestic and international framework for submersible operations, according to the report.
The report also alleges that for several years preceding the Titan’s explosion, OceanGate “leveraged intimidation tactics, allowances for scientific operations, and the company’s favorable reputation to evade regulatory scrutiny.”
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for the Titan. Other factors cited in the report include a toxic workplace culture at OceanGate, an inadequate domestic and international regulatory framework for submersible operations and vessels of novel design, and an ineffective whistleblower process under the Seaman’s Protection Act.
The board also found OceanGate failed to properly investigate and address known hull anomalies following its 2022 Titanic expedition. Investigators determined the Titan’s real-time monitoring system generated data that should have been analyzed and acted on during the 2022 Titanic expedition. However, OceanGate did not take any action related to the data, conduct any preventative maintenance or properly store the Titan during the extended off season before its 2023 Titanic expedition.
Investigators also included 17 safety recommendations aimed at “strengthening oversight of submersible operations, improving coordination among federal agencies and closing gaps in international maritime policy.”
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Jason Neubauer, MBI’s investigative board chair, said that the findings will help prevent future tragedies.
“The two-year investigation has identified multiple contributing factors that led to this tragedy, providing valuable lessons learned to prevent a future occurrence,” he said in a statement. “There is a need for stronger oversight and clear options for operators who are exploring new concepts outside of the existing regulatory framework.”
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What happened to OceanGate’s Titan?
The disappearance of the Titan off Canada in 2023 led to a search that grabbed worldwide attention, and the Coast Guard convened its highest level of investigation in the aftermath.
The Titan lost contact with its support vessel 1 hour and 45 minutes into the dive at 12,000 feet below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. Officials searched for the submersible for four days, until evidence of an implosion was found on the ocean floor.
OceanGate co-founder Stockton Rush was among the five who died. Other victims included Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Hamish Harding, Shahzada Dawood and his son, Suleman Dawood.
After the implosion, Washington state-based OceanGate suspended its operations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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