A Submarine's Expedition To The Wreckage Of The Titanic Ship Ends In Tragedy.
The comments of several people, especially those of famous individuals, on various social media platforms about a missing submarine that embarked on an expedition to view the wreckage of the renowned Titanic ship piqued my interest as I scrolled through their websites to update myself on events happening within and outside Nigeria a few days ago.
After the comments about the missing submarine captured my attention, the next thought that came to my mind was a wish, hoping that this unexpected incident would not eventually become an ill-fated one like the Titanic. While I was still immersed in my thoughts about the possibility of this outcome, other eventualities sprung up in my mind, making me feel calm and optimistic about the entire situation. Some of these thoughts included the high chances of the search and rescue team charged with the task of tracking the missing submarine finding it and the efficacy of modern-day technology to expedite the operation. Based on this premise, I decided to learn more about the series of events that led to the disappearance of the submarine.
Logo of OceanGate Expeditions, the company that conducted the expedition
My inquiry provided me with more information about the whole incident. Some of the information I gathered from it is as follows:
The expedition took place on the 18th of this month.
There were five passengers onboard the submarine.
The submarine lost contact with its operators a few hours after the expedition began.
The company that organised the expedition is called OceanGate Expeditions, which has been offering services for expeditions to the wreckage of the Titanic ship to explorers since 2021.
The name of the submarine used for the expedition is "Titan."
The fare for the expedition cost a substantial amount of money ($250,000).
The disappearance of the submarine after the commencement of the expedition became a source of concern for its operators who informed relevant authorities about the incident, prompting a search and rescue operation.
Odysseus 6K, the ROV used in the search and rescue operation of the "Titan"
Although there were no clues from my inquiry indicating that the submarine would be found soon without any casualties, I remained optimistic that the passengers onboard it would be rescued unharmed. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Three days after the search and rescue operation for the submarine was underway, an announcement of the death of all passengers onboard it due to an implosion was made by the US Coast Guard, which was part of the team that led the operation. The announcement was based on the debris of some parts of the missing submarine that were found by a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) deployed to search for it in the ocean.
The passengers onboard the "Titan" in a clockwise direction from the top left :
- Hamish Harding
- Stockton Rush
- Suleman and Shadzada Dawood
- Paul-Henri Nargeolet
This news was received with sadness by concerned members of the public, including myself, as we were optimistic that the outcome of the search and rescue operation for the submarine would be positive. The tragic accident of the "Titan" submarine was reminiscent of the renowned Titanic ship that occurred over a century ago. It cast a state of anxiety and sadness upon the general public across the world. Additional information on the ill-fated submarine revealed that the passengers onboard comprised the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, a British businessman and explorer, a British-Pakistani businessman and his son, and a renowned French maritime expert and explorer.
Throughout history, humans have been known to embark on explorations on Earth and in space for several reasons. Some of these adventurous journeys have turned out to be successful and have led to important discoveries about the world and space, while others have been failures and tragic accidents. Although the recent event involving the "Titan" submarine falls into the latter category, I believe the incident will compel stakeholders in underwater explorations to study the cause of the accident and establish effective regulations on such expeditions to enhance safety and minimise the associated risks.
May God grant repose to the victims of the "Titan" submarine accident and give their families the strength to bear the loss. Amen.
Thanks for reading,
Have a splendid day folks.
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