Titanic sub rescue boss fights back tears as he relives heartbreaking moment they found wreckage with ‘human remains’
The leader of the Titanic sub rescue effort fought back tears today as he relieved the heartbreaking moment his team discovered suspected human remains.
Edward Cassano, chief executive of Pelagic Research Services, spoke at a press conference today about the recovery of the wreckage of the doomed Titan submersible earlier this week.
The sub is believed to have imploded on June 18, shortly after losing communications with its support ship, killing all five passengers on board.
A visibly emotional Mr Cassano said: “Our system was launched from the back deck and began to descend to the sea floor.
“Shortly after arriving on the sea floor, we discovered the debris of the Titan submersible.
“Of course we continued to document the site and by 12pm sadly a rescue turned into a recovery.
“I have to apologise, we’re still demobilising. There’s a lot of emotions, people are tired.”
The US Coast Guard is currently working to identify the suspected human remains found by search teams on Wednesday.
However, there was heartbreak for the families of the five men on board as the search was called off, meaning they are unlikely to be able to recover the bodies of their loved ones.
The passengers have been named as British billionaire Hamish Harding, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleiman Dawood, as well as Stockton Rush, the CEO of the company running the trip, and pilot Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
They were the subjects of an international multi-day rescue effort after losing contact with their support ship just an hour and 45 minutes into the dive on June 18.
However, this was tragically found to be in vain as it is believed that the vessel suffered an implosion when communications dropped out, killing them all instantaneously.
OceanGate, the company that operated the sub, has faced questions over the safety of the vessel.
One deep-sea explorer claimed that he had pointed out a number of flaws in the craft’s design but was alarmed by the “cavalier attitude” taken by staff.
Likewise, a submarine expert suggested seven clues that the wreck will reveal, including hidden cracks and faulty wiring.
Concerns have included the fact that Titan was steered by a budget video game-style controller and the lack of a GPS system.
It comes after it was revealed that the moment the sub began its ill-fated descent was captured on a video by a crew member.
Meanwhile, the aunt of 19-year-old passenger Suleiman Dawood claimed that he was “terrified” about the trip, but went on it to please his dad, who was a passionate explorer.
Suleiman was studying at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland, while his father was a successful businessman.