The family of British billionaire Hamish Harding has slammed OceanGate after it was reported that the company took eight hours to report their missing submersible to the Coast Guard on Sunday.
Time has run out for the five people onboard the OceanGate Expeditions submersible that vanished en route to a tour of the wreckage of the Titanic, situated 12,000 feet below the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. After four days of a massive-scale search operation by coastguards from multiple countries, officials have failed to get to the submersible in time to rescue the five onboard.
When the submersible went missing, it had 96 hours of oxygen backup. However, four days have passed, which theoretically means that their oxygen supply has finished.
Although the official declaration has not been made, the worst is being assumed – that Harding, OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, British-Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, and French pilot Paul Henri-Nargeolet – who were all onboard the vessel when it lost all communication with its commanding station, have not survived the tragedy.
Harding is survived by his wife Linda, their two sons named Rorry and Giles, as well as a stepdaughter named Lauren. He also has a stepson named Brian Szasz. Dawood is survived by his wife Christine and his daughter, Alina.
Harding’s cousin, Kathleen Cosnett, said: “It’s very frightening. It took so long for them to get going to rescue them, it’s far too long. I would have thought three hours would be the bare minimum.”
It was reported that passengers had to cough up something to the tune of $250,000 for a single ride to the Titanic wreckage in the submersible. Each of them also signed a waiver apparently before setting foot inside the submersible for what was supposed to be the ride of their lifetimes. Details of the waiver have not been made public yet. Only they had to give consent to accept the submersible which is not approved by any regulatory body.
After the recent debacle, people are curious to find out whether there is a chance that the families of the deceased, especially Harding and Dawood – a billionaire and millionaire respectively – will be suing OceanGate for the mishap. If the passengers waived the right to file a lawsuit against OceanGate then the company will be safe from any potential lawsuits from the families. But if the waiver does not mention any such deal, OceanGate could be looking at massive lawsuits, especially after some of the major design flaws and controversies have come to light about their Titan submersible.
Here is a brief look at some of these controversies:
Titan was being operated by a $30 Logitech game controller
As experts began going into details about the kind of technology that the submersible was using, it was found that the vessel was being controlled by a Logitech F710 wireless PC game controller from 2010, which shocked a lot of people on social media.
Also Read | Who is Wendy Rush, Stockton Rush’s wife?
According to Ars Technica, the device retails on Amazon for about $29.99. It is a wireless dual-thumbstick gamepad for PCs that use 2.4 GHz communications to a USB receiver. Despite its chunky design being outdated, it has been in continuous production for 13 years.
OceanGate took 8 hours to alert the Coast Guard that the submersible had gone missing
Titan dove into the depths of the ocean at 8 am on Sunday morning, around 400 miles southeast of Newfoundland, close to where the famous Titanic’s wreckage lay. At 9:45 am, which is an hour and 45 minutes into the expedition, its mother ship, Polar Prince reportedly lost all contact with Titan.
However, the U.S. Coast Guard learned about the vessel’s missing status at 5:40 pm, which is eight hours later. The Canadian Coast Guard was alerted after the United States, at 9:13 pm on Sunday night. The reason behind the decision to delay alerting the coast guards of both countries is unclear at the moment.
Also Read | OceanGate’s CEO Stockton Rush was warned by Submersible experts regarding possible disaster in 2018: Report
OceanGate never conducted an independent safety check for Titan
David Lochridge, a former employee of OceanGate, cautioned in 2018 that lax “quality control and safety” procedures may jeopardize the sub’s safety, which “paying passengers would not be aware” of.
He was the Director of Marine Operations for the Titan project. He was let go in 2018 because the company rejected his desire for the submersible to undergo more thorough safety inspections, including “testing to prove its integrity.”
The company’s solicitors claimed in a court statement submitted in 2018 that Lochridge’s job was terminated because he ‘could not accept’ its research and plans, including safety standards.
Stockton Rush was warned by submersible experts regarding possible disaster in 2018
The New York Times obtained a letter from the Manned Underwater Vehicles committee of the Marine Technology Society, in which they urged Rush to exercise caution due to concerns about the company’s “experimental” approach. The letter stated that this approach could lead to problems ranging from minor to catastrophic, but did not provide specific details about the perceived dangers.
It is unclear whether Rush or any employees of OceanGate responded to the warning letter.
Stockton Rush was sued for fraud by Florida couple who signed up for Titanic tour
A Florida couple, Marc and Sharon Hagle, sued OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush after the date of their voyage was delayed by three years because the rechristened submersible required additional testing and experienced an undefined “equipment failure.”
The Hagles further assert that OceanGate did not keep their money in a separate account where they could get it in the event that OceanGate missed their deadlines. Finally, the business allegedly informed the two that they may take part in a 2021 trip to the Titanic’s buried hull but would not be eligible for a refund.
