By: Callie Gao

On June 18, a submersible carrying 5 people was announced missing. Its destination was the location of the remains of the famous ship, the Titanic. They went missing, and 4 days later they were believed to be dead when search teams found machine parts of the underwater craft.

The submersible, a vehicle similar to a submarine but smaller and controlled by a switch or remote, took off from the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador to the Atlantic Ocean. Its disappearance has caught the attention of the world. But what went wrong?

Apparently, around 90 minutes or 700 kilometers away from Labrador, after going into the ocean, the machine lost connection to its support vessel.

By Monday, June 19th, the passengers had only 96 hours of oxygen before they would die. Many countries sent ships and equipment to assist in the rescue operation, but nothing was found. In the following two days, an aircraft picked up banging sounds from the ocean. People speculated that the sound came from the submersible but that was proven wrong as officials now think the noises did not have to do with the submersible. In the early morning of June 22, two remotely operated vehicles, called ROVs, found debris around the Titanic.

Paul Hankins, an underwater expert that works for the U.S. Navy, said in a conference that “We then found a large debris field… Within that large debris field, we found the front end bell of the pressure hull. That was our first indication that there was a catastrophic event.”

After the news of the submersible being found in pieces, people began wondering if the passengers would be recovered. John Mauger, a Rear Admiral coast guard for the U.S., said in an interview, “This is an incredibly unforgiving environment down there on the seafloor, and the debris is consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel. So we’ll continue to work and continue to search the area down there, but I don’t have an answer for prospects at this time.”

After the families of the people that died in the submersible were informed of their deaths, they were devastated. “Please continue to keep the departed souls and our family in your prayers during this difficult time of mourning,” the Hussain and Kulsum Dawood family said. “The immense love and support we receive continues to help us endure this unimaginable loss.”

Sites used:

-https://www.cbsnews.com/news/titanic-submarine-shipwreck-expedition-missing-search-what-we-know/#

-https://eb18600f7bb2916037f5ee8e636ce199.cdn.bubble.io/f1687709518559x542052506609288060/5%20people%20in%20underwater%20Titanic%20expedition%20have%20been%20lost%20at%20sea%20_%20Article%20_%20Kids%20News.pdf