On Monday, a search and rescue operation was in progress for a submarine that vanished in the North Atlantic while on a mission to investigate the Titanic’s wreckage. When asked about the rescue operations off the coast of Newfoundland, Lt. Jordan Hart of the U.S.
Coast Guard in Boston first News that crews were “currently undergoing a search and rescue operation.” Rear Admiral John Mauger, who attended the news briefing, confirmed that there were five persons on board. They were identified by a Coast Guard representative as an operator and four mission specialists, a phrase the corporation uses to describe its passengers.
The crew of the Polar Prince, the ship that transported the submersible and expedition members to the dive location, “lost contact with them approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes into the vessel’s dive,” the Coast Guard stated in a tweet. The dive took place on Sunday morning.
In a statement, OceanGate adventures, a business that sends out manned submersibles for deep-sea adventures, confirmed that its sub was the target of the rescue effort and said it was “exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely.”
The company declined to disclose the number of individuals aboard the missing vessel or whether any of them were paying visitors, although it does accept paying tourists as passengers on its voyages.
The crew members aboard the submersible and their families are the only thing on our minds right now, OceanGate said, adding that it was “extremely appreciative of the extensive assistance we have received from several government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to reestablish contact with the submersible.”