Titanic-bound Titan Sub Disaster: Condolences (June 2023)

Photo: OceanGate/FILE

I am heartbroken about the Titan submersible disaster on Sunday, June 18, 2023. An OceanGate Titan submersible with five explorers on board catastrophically imploded killing all of them¹. They were descending to the Titanic site in the northern Atlantic Ocean to personally visit the Titanic. My thoughts and prayers go out to their families, friends, colleagues, and fellow explorers and adventurers.

Lost were Hamish Harding, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, and Stockton Rush. Hamish Harding and Paul-Henri Nargeolet were members of the Explorers Club². The president of the Explorers Club is Richard Garriott de Cayeux who is a friend of mine.

I’m deeply saddened by the disaster while super-impressed by the search and rescue effort conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard and many international groups and companies. I served in the U.S. Air Force and personally know the unwavering commitment of such service men and women.

I try to be a bit of an explorer or adventurer at times, yet not to this scale. This disaster reminded me of how I and seven other “city kids” were lost in the North Cascade mountain range for several hours. I was just 16 years old. My story “lost while adventuring” in 1977 is no comparison to this disaster, yet it might have been a disaster if we had not found our way out.

References

1. “Titanic-bound submersible suffered ‘catastrophic implosion.’ The US Navy detected an implosion Sunday and told rescuers, an official tells CNN”, CNN, https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/22/us/submersible-titanic-oceangate-search-thursday/, accessed on June 23, 2023.
2. “With Deepest Condolences-Loss of the Titan”, The Explorers Club, https://www.explorers.org/with-deepest-condolences-loss-of-the-titan/, accessed on June 23, 2023.