submersible missing near the Titanic

[Allison]

I also read that one of the men responsible for the discovery of the Titanic in the 80’s, Paul Nargeolet, may have been on board as well. In what capacity the article did not say, however, he should have been well aware of the risks of diving so deep, and what is required to make such a dive successful. Having two such people on board, makes me wonder if someone was trying to impress another, perhaps someone who could be an investor. Pure speculation on my part though.

Per CNN:
While the names of those on board have not been released by the authorities, British businessman Hamish Harding, Pakistani billionaire Shahzada Dawood and his son Sulaiman Dawood, and French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet have been confirmed to be on board the craft.

 

[CGB]

Nope nope nope nope nope nope nope.

All the nopes.

If you've got any nopes left, I'll take 'em. Really hoping for a good outcome.

 

[Disneefun]

At this point, I'm actually hoping it imploded. Given that there are almost zero rescue options unless it managed to surface, implosion would be a far more merciful death than sitting in a tin can, freezing in the dark at the bottom of the ocean, waiting for the air to run out.

 

[MamaMermaid]

At this point, I'm actually hoping it imploded. Given that there are almost zero rescue options unless it managed to surface, implosion would be a far more merciful death than sitting in a tin can, freezing in the dark at the bottom of the ocean, waiting for the air to run out.

Agreed.

Such a nightmare. I am fascinated by the Titanic and would LOVE to see the wreckage with my own eyes but there's nothing about that submarine that would make me feel comfortable boarding it!

 

[QueenIsabella]

Yeah, yeah, I know it's the Daily Mail, but this article had some good information:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-report-missing-submersible-lost-contact.html

It says that our manned rescue vehicles can't go much below 2000 feet down--they'll basically need to attach a 2.5 mile long cable to bring Titan up, if they can find/free her.

 

[dvcgirl67]

At this point, I'm actually hoping it imploded. Given that there are almost zero rescue options unless it managed to surface, implosion would be a far more merciful death than sitting in a tin can, freezing in the dark at the bottom of the ocean, waiting for the air to run out.

Or....waiting on the surface to get out as they can't open the hatch...it's screwed on from the outside. So, they could be on the surface and run out of air. It just seems incredibly risky on about every level.

 

[MrsPete]

Me, either. Especially when I read that you're literally bolted into the thing--even if it surfaced, you can't get out from the inside, you have to have outside help to open the bolts. That's a big, fat "HECK NO!" from me!

I don't have nightmares often, but they're ALWAYS about being trapped /unable to move or escape, so I'm with those who'd never, never, never get into this thing.

They bring a "urinal bottle" down with them....like you'd see in a hospital.

On the positive side (if such a thing exists), all the passengers are male, so it'd be easy for them to use a bottle.

They're only supposed to be down there for 10 hours. I would imagine it's awful if they're even still alive. I heard about the amount of air they carry, but without power (if they've lost it), I wonder if they're able to stay warm enough. Just a nightmarish way to go. If they are gone, I hope it was quick for them and not slowly running out of air.

Exactly what I was thinking /fearing. Being cold, in darkness, possibly injured if a crash occurred, and knowing that you're going to run out of air and fall asleep ... all with very little chance of rescue. Waiting and knowing would be much worse than them having gone quickly.

Here's what the sub looks like inside (different passengers, of course, maybe some of the same crew):

I read the size of the thing, and it was like half the size of my living room ... but now I realize that was the exterior size. That image looks really, really small.

How were they going to SEE the Titanic from that thing? I don't see any windows.

I have a feeling they are no longer with us but hope for a miracle. If they have perished I hope it was quick. The adults were able to make an educated decision regarding risks but the nineteen year old boy with his dad...tears me up.

Yes, some poor woman is going to have to deal with the loss of her husband AND her son.

At this point, I'm actually hoping it imploded. Given that there are almost zero rescue options unless it managed to surface, implosion would be a far more merciful death than sitting in a tin can, freezing in the dark at the bottom of the ocean, waiting for the air to run out.

Agree completely.

Yeah, yeah, I know it's the Daily Mail, but this article had some good information:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-report-missing-submersible-lost-contact.html

It says that our manned rescue vehicles can't go much below 2000 feet down--they'll basically need to attach a 2.5 mile long cable to bring Titan up, if they can find/free her.

I also read that the search area is about the size of Connecticut.

 

[Imzadi]

Coast guard (or Navy) Recovery craft can dive up to 20,000 feet. I just read that.

Possible, but I don't know that those are manned subs. And they probably aren't capable of bringing the Titan up to the surface.

I just saw an interview with a former head of the U.S. Coast Guard, he said the recovery craft can only go down 2,000 ft not 20,000 ft. They do that for submarine rescues. But the submarines have to be HIGH enough to be able to not be pressurized and then they can get the crew out at 2,000 ft. directly over to the rescue sub underwater.

He said there is currently no way to get the crew out of the Titan down at 12,000 ft.

There currently is no way to get a crane in and try to haul the Titan up.

Even if they FIND the Titan, the options they have to RESCUE them are pretty bleak. This is a two part process. First finding the Titan. Second, depending on where they find the Titan, to then figure out what part 2 needs to be to bring it up. And all this is under the clock as they are running out of time.


The Titan has some metal struts along the sides, I'm hoping they can just drop ship anchors down and try to catch the hook part on a couple of the struts and try to dredge it back up, if it's not caught on some debris of the Titanic.

 

[Neapolitan Ice Cream]

36 hours of air remaining...

 

[dvcgirl67]

36 hours of air remaining...

I just heard the CEO of the company is on board.....he's in the CBS morning show meeting with the reporter who went down to see the Titanic. it's one of those harrowing news stories where the clock is ticking and all you can do is hope for a miracle. I was thinking of the boys in Thailand stuck in that cave...that was also a very bleak situation. One rescue diver died, but in the end they got them out. Hoping for a similar outcome here.

 

[Imzadi]

I don't have nightmares often, but they're ALWAYS about being trapped /unable to move or escape, so I'm with those who'd never, never, never get into this thing.

I don't even like getting into an elevator when I see a bunch of kids. The idea of being trapped with some screaming, shrieking, whiny, crying kids, puts me in claustrophobia mode. I hold back and wait for a different elevator.

Going in a metal can underwater, nope!

 

[lifesavacation]

We're going to South Africa next year and passed on options for more remote places not so much because of the little planes, but because you can only bring soft sided luggage....very limited weight. We'll be there for over two weeks, so not sure how we'd swing that....unless we stored luggage somewhere?

We just did a helicopter tour on the Big Island. I did enjoy it, and forced myself to avoid googling "helicopter crashes in Hawaii".....but did after we returned. Glad I didn't google before.

Off topic response: When we visited S. Africa & Botswana via small plane (10 seater) we had to pack for 2 weeks in soft sided luggage (Osprey backpack). It was challenging but doable. There was a group with us who didn't follow the instructions and they gave them garbage sacks to put their clothes in and then they stored their luggage for them.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Off topic response: When we visited S. Africa & Botswana via small plane (10 seater) we had to pack for 2 weeks in soft sided luggage (Osprey backpack). It was challenging but doable. There was a group with us who didn't follow the instructions and they gave them garbage sacks to put their clothes in and then they stored their luggage for them.

Oh nice trip! I've read that they don't mess around on those little planes!

We really toyed with Botswana for 1/2 of the safari portion of the trip, but decided on a little bit of a cushier go of it for our first trip to Africa, choosing three nice lodges in different areas of the Greater Kruger....we've got nine nights on safari. 3 at andBeyonds Ngala Tented Camp in the Manyleti Reserve, 3 at Signita's Sweni in the Kruger Park near the border with Mozambique and then three at Londolozi's Founder's camp in the Sabi Reserve. Our trip isn't until 2024....can't wait, so excited.

 

[QueenIsabella]

How were they going to SEE the Titanic from that thing? I don't see any windows.

There's a viewing port facing the toilet, at the very rear (front?) of the sub. This led to many jokes in our house.

Yes, some poor woman is going to have to deal with the loss of her husband AND her son.

Well, she's rich, so there's that. Too bad she didn't have the sense to put the kibosh on going on this stupid trip. Forget spending half a million to send your husband and son down, there's not enough money in the treasury to get me on that thing!

 

[Neapolitan Ice Cream]

Did you know they're trying to construct a Titanic II? It will have all the modern safety features, a Diesel engine and so on. It was proposed quite a while ago and construction has I believe started. However, the completion date has slipped time and time again - last I heard it was due for completion at 2022.

 

[HeatherC]

It is just so horrific to think about. My heart goes out to those onboard and their families. Praying for a miracle.

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

Well, she's rich, so there's that. Too bad she didn't have the sense to put the kibosh on going on this stupid trip. Forget spending half a million to send your husband and son down, there's not enough money in the treasury to get me on that thing!

Wow...that lack of compassion is astounding. Appears all the money in the world is not going to be able to save her husband and her son. Do you think she's just going to go out and purchase new ones?

I can't imagine what she is going through. You have no idea if she expressed concerns. Ultimately her husband and son were adults making their own decisions.

 

[dvcgirl67]

There's a viewing port facing the toilet, at the very rear (front?) of the sub. This led to many jokes in our house.

Well, she's rich, so there's that. Too bad she didn't have the sense to put the kibosh on going on this stupid trip. Forget spending half a million to send your husband and son down, there's not enough money in the treasury to get me on that thing!

Yeah, it's just really risky. Reports are now surfacing about the submarine/submersible industry leaders writing leaders signed by dozens of experts.....that they weren't following industry safety protocols with respect to their titanic dives.

I'll say this though, the British gentleman was really dong the whole "adventurer" thing. He went to space on Jeff Bezos's rocket. He has the deepest and longest dive on record in the deepest trench in the ocean. He had been quoted many times as understand the risks of these endeavors. For some, it's like anything else....you get hooked, and if you're a billionaire like he is, you can literally afford anything.

 

[QueenIsabella]

Yeah, it's just really risky. Reports are now surfacing about the submarine/submersible industry leaders writing leaders signed by dozens of experts.....that they weren't following industry safety protocols with respect to their titanic dives.

I'll say this though, the British gentleman was really dong the whole "adventurer" thing. He went to space on Jeff Bezos's rocket. He has the deepest and longest dive on record in the deepest trench in the ocean. He had been quoted many times as understand the risks of these endeavors. For some, it's like anything else....you get hooked, and if you're a billionaire like he is, you can literally afford anything.

Yeah, we were talking about this earlier (DH, DS26, and I). You have to give credit to the risk-takers, the dreamers, the adventurers. We all benefit from their successes and failures. I'm not a fan of Elon Musk, to use an example--I think he's this generation's P.T. Barnum. But, I respect the heck out of him because he's a visionary.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Yeah, we were talking about this earlier (DH, DS26, and I). You have to give credit to the risk-takers, the dreamers, the adventurers. We all benefit from their successes and failures. I'm not a fan of Elon Musk, to use an example--I think he's this generation's P.T. Barnum. But, I respect the heck out of him because he's a visionary.

Totally agree with you…we need visionaries, whether we totally agree with their philosophies or not.

I hope we all wake up tomorrow with some good news regarding these poor people.