A submersible used to take tourists to view the Titanic shipwreck in the Atlantic Ocean went missing off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, on Monday morning.
In a press conference on Monday afternoon, Rear Admiral John Mauger, commander of the First US Coast Guard District, confirmed there was a search and rescue operation underway for the submersible in the North Atlantic Ocean.
“We are doing everything that we can do to make sure that we can locate and rescue those on board,” Mr Mauger said.
The submersible, owned by OceanGate Expeditions, takes paying tourists to tour the Titanic shipwreck, among other deep-sea expeditions.
Five people are aboard the submersible, the Coast Guard confirmed.
A search and rescue effort is underway to locate and find the submersible and the people aboard.
Here’s everything we know so far.
What happened?
On Monday morning, reports emerged that a commercial submersible had gone missing in the North Atlantic Ocean near the Titanic shipwreck.
The submersible is operated by OceanGate Expeditions which deploys submersibles and crew for deep-sea expeditions. The company offers individuals the opportunity to explore the Titanic shipwreck for $250,000 each.
The company had recently deployed an expedition to the Titanic shipwreck, according to its Twitter page.
On Sunday (18 June), the submersible began its excursion with the research vessel the Polar Prince. But just one hour and 45 minutes into its launch, the two vessels lost connection.
The US Coast Guard was notified of the missing watercraft and its five people on board on Sunday. Shortly after, they launched a search and rescue mission which continued on Monday.
“The @USCG is searching for a 21-foot submersible from the Canadian research vessel Polar Prince,” the Coast Guard tweeted on Monday.
Several other authorities including the Canadian Coast Guard and Canadian Armed Forces provided resources to the US Coast Guard in the search for the missing watercraft.
In a statement provided to CBS News, OceanGate said: “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
OceanGate added that they are “deeply thankful for the extensive assistance we have received from several government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to establish contact with the submersible.”
The Independent has reached out to OceanGate…
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