Hamish Harding has been missing since Sunday while aboard the Titan submersible. Chris Brown, a thrill-seeker and friend of billionaire Harding, allegedly backed out of the dive because he felt OceanGate was “cutting too many corners” and decided instead to not accompany the billionaire on the missing Titanic sub. He reportedly pulled out of the submersible excursion and even requested the company for a refund.

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Who is Chris Brown?

Chris Brown is a 61-year-old Brit who was one of the first people to have signed up for the submersible tour but pulled out later on.

Along with Harding, Brown put down a deposit for the expedition to the wreck, but he later thought the “risks were too high.” He ultimately changed his mind after growing concerned about the technology and materials employed in the ship, particularly the use of “old scaffolding poles” as ballast by OceanGate and the fact that its controls were “based on computer game-style controllers.”

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Brown also stated that he is “really upset about Hamish,” one of the five people who were on the Titan submarine and are currently missing. After having a “few beers” while on vacation at Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island, Brown and Harding had decided to join up for the £80,000 trip. He said that when the Titan was still under construction, the couple paid the 10% deposit for the trip, which has now more than doubled in price.

Brown, though, said that he discovered OceanGate had missed crucial objectives while testing the submersible’s depth in the years that followed. It worried the multi-millionaire digital marketing tycoon, who eventually sent OceanGate an email to request a refund.

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Though he claims Harding is not the kind to become anxious, he is concerned for his pal. Keeping “extremely calm,” he thinks the billionaire is probably “processing plans, schemes, and ideas through his enormous brain.” Harding, according to Brown, will be “giving hope” to the other travelers.