The US Coastguard has confirmed that the families of the "Titan Five" have been notified that the missing OceanGate submersible had suffered what is believed to be a "catastrophic implosion".
First Coast Guard District commander Rear Adm. John Mauger said at a press conference on Thursday evening that the debris found earlier in the day was consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber" of the OceanGate Titan submersible.
He added that an ROV from the vessel Horizon Arctic "discovered the tailbone of the Titan submersible approximately 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic on the sea floor."
Mauger added that five major pieces of debris were found in total, which indicated that the Titan had suffered a "catastrophic implosion".
A statement from OceanGate, per NBC News, reads:
"We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost.
"These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans. Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew.
"This is an extremely sad time for our dedicated employees who are exhausted and grieving deeply over this loss. The entire OceanGate family is deeply grateful for the countless men and women from multiple organizations of the international community who expedited wide-ranging resources and have worked so very hard on this mission.
"We appreciate their commitment to finding these five explorers, and their days and nights of tireless work in support of our crew and their families. This is a very sad time for the entire explorer community, and for each of the family members of those lost at sea. We respectfully ask that the privacy of these families be respected during this most painful time."
On Sunday (June 18), it was reported that an underwater vessel - known as Titan - had lost contact with its mothership "Polar Prince" after diving into the depths of the North Atlantic Ocean with five people on board.
The expedition, operated by OceanGate, was described as an opportunity to "become one of the few to see the Titanic with your own eyes," and aimed to embark on a 12,500 feet deep dive to see the infamous Titanic wreckage - which sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg.
However, the sub failed to provide a signal to its Canadian launch ship just an hour and 45 minutes into the journey, which led to operators growing concerned.
Over the last few days, a major search operation - headed by the US Coast Guard as well as OceanGate Expeditions - has been underway to try to recover the vessel. This was made even more critical as initial estimates stated that the submersible had a 96-hour oxygen supply.
The desperate search to locate the missing vessel entered a critical stage on Thursday, June 22 as reports stated the oxygen supply would have depleted.
The five confirmed names on the submersible were CEO and founder of OceanGate Expeditions Stockton Rush, British billionaire explorer Hamish Harding, French submersible pilot Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman Dawood.
They are being referred to as the "Titan Five".
The rescue and search operation - which involves both US and Canadian ships and planes - faced a difficult challenge, as the Titanic wreckage sits at a depth of approximately 12,500 feet on the ocean floor.
Our thoughts go out to everybody impacted by this tragedy.
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