The Titanic Foundation is reviewing safety claims made by OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush after his doomed submarine imploded, killing five.
Jessica Sanders, head of RMS Titanic Inc, described Rush as “cavalier” after telling potential passengers that the Titan submarine was “much safer than flying in a helicopter or even diving,” or even “crossing the street.”
The organization is investigating whether it should have left 77-year-old Paul-Henri Nargeolet, who headed the foundation, on the Titan.
Rush and Nargeolet along with British billionaire adventurer Hamish Harding and Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, 19, died when the Titan imploded 12,500 feet under the Atlantic Ocean en route to the historic Titanic shipwreck.
CEO Stockton Rush has made several claims to French Navy veteran PH Nargeolet about the submarine’s safety
PH Nargeolet, 71, was an expert on the Titanic wreck and worked with a company that recovered thousands of artifacts from the site
Sanders said the foundation is now examining OceanGate’s past records and questioning the veracity of Rush’s statements.
“We now have our own internal questions about the statements OceanGate made on which we laid the groundwork for allowing PH to go,” she said.
“We’re going back and looking at that ourselves internally right now, because statements have been made not only with us, but also with the court, which we now have to go back and verify because of these stories that are coming up that question them.” ‘
Nargeolet had made dozens of trips to the wreck and was credited as ‘Mr Titanic’ for his research into the shipwreck.
Rush had an idiosyncratic approach to undersea exploration that drew comparisons to visionaries like Elon Musk.
He idolized Star Trek protagonist Captain Kirk and bragged about “breaking the rules” to build the Titan ship.
Rush’s methods — feared to have contributed to the tragedy — were a major red flag for deep-sea exploration experts, including two who parted ways with OceanGate over their concerns.
Dozens of industry leaders and explorers also warned Rush in 2018 that the company’s “experimental” approach could be “catastrophic.”
Jessica Sanders (pictured), head of RMS Titanic Inc, investigates whether the organization should have left Paul-Henri Nargeolet, who headed the foundation, on the ship in the first place
Nargeolet, 77, (left) was also killed when the submarine imploded on a voyage to the Titanic – 12,500 feet under the Atlantic Ocean
Canadian police are considering whether ‘criminal, federal or provincial laws’ were broken in the lead-up to the Titan underwater ship disaster
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police will investigate “the circumstances leading to the deaths” of the five crew members aboard the submarine and decide “whether or not a full investigation is warranted”
That year, he fought back, saying he was “tired of industry players trying to use a security argument to stop innovation.”
He seemed outraged by the “obscenely safe” rules he saw as an obstacle to development.
Nargeolot, who said his goal has always been “education and conservation,” joined the doomed expedition as an “OceanGate guest.”
He is director of underwater research at the RMS Titanic Inc, and Sanders adds that they approved the trip after careful consideration.
“He initially approached us and said, ‘OceanGate does these expeditions… is there a conflict?’ she said,
OceanGate’s website still has pages advertising trips to the Titanic – 11 days after five people, including the company’s CEO, were killed on one of the trips.
Titan, controlled by OceanGate, was on its way to the wreckage of the Titanic when it imploded
Five people were aboard Titan, including British billionaire adventurer Hamish Harding and Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, who was just 19
Titan was a tourist submarine that imploded while traveling to the wreckage of the Titanic 12,500 feet below the Atlantic Ocean
On Thursday, there was another page titled “Titan Expedition – Explore the Titanic” offering a chance to dive to the shipwreck in the company’s submarine.
The page also mentions the famous French explorer PH Nargeolet, who perished aboard the Titan, as an expert “who may accompany you on [the] expedition’.
Canadian police are considering whether “criminal, federal or provincial laws” were broken in the run-up to the Titan submarine disaster.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police will investigate “the circumstances leading to the deaths” of the five crew members aboard the submarine and decide “whether a full investigation is warranted.”
Their investigation was underway on Thursday, a day after it became known that human remains were found during the recovery mission and parts of the ship were brought ashore.