A former captain in the US Navy said that the Titan submersible’s missing crew has only a 1% chance of surviving.
OceanGate’s ship, which went missing on Sunday, is being looked for by a huge search and rescue team right now.
Five people are on board: Hamish Harding, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Shahzada Dawood, his son Sulaiman, and Stockton Rush, who is the CEO of OceanGate.
In a statement released yesterday, June 20, the company said, “For some time, we have been unable to establish communications with one of our submersible exploration vehicles which is currently visiting the wreck site of the Titanic.
“Our entire focus is on the wellbeing of the crew and every step possible is being taken to bring the five crew members back safely.
“We are deeply grateful for the urgent and extensive assistance we are receiving from multiple government agencies and deep-sea companies as we seek to reestablish contact with the submersible.
“We pray for the safe return of the crew and passengers, and we will provide updates as they are available.”
Yesterday, experts told the media at a press conference that the crew had about 40 hours of oxygen left.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Lt. David Marquet, a former US Navy nuclear submarine commander, said, “If I were advising the Prime Minister, I’d say their chances are 1%.”
Continuing to talk about the problems rescuers face, he said, “The problem is that it’s probably on the bottom right now because it wasn’t found on the surface, and it doesn’t seem to be making any noises, which makes me think that they can’t turn on the hull.”
“We’re then talking about trying to find a minivan amongst the wreckage of the Titanic.
“Once they find it though we’ve got to get it up to the surface which means either freeing it if it’s lodged in the Titanic somehow.
“Or more likely, they have lost the ability [to surface], so we need to hoist them which needs a ship with a 2.5mile-long cable.
“The most difficult part will be getting the hook on to it. It’s like that arcade game except you can’t see, so paint the walls black, and make it 2.5miles long – and there’s wind in there so it is blowing around.
“All is not lost yet because they still have oxygen but… imagine the sub is on the far side of the moon – that is a better representation.
“Even if you find it, how do you get it back up? They can’t open it from the inside – it’s bolted from the outside.”
