Photo:Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
The safety of the tourist submersible that went missing on its way to the site of theTitanichas allegedly been a matter of concern before.
TheTitan, carryingfive passengersto the wreckage site 900 miles east of Cape Cod in the North Atlantic, went missing on June 18,according to the First Coast Guard District’s official Twitter account.
According to the 2018 breach of contract suit, former OceanGate employee David Lochridge, a submersible pilot and director of marine operations at the time, alleged that the sub could not safely reach the depths it needed for guests to see theTitanicwreckage — an estimated 13,000 feet underwater,TNRreported.
He then countersued alleging he was wrongfully terminated for being a “whistleblower,” according toTNR.
An OceanGate spokesperson told PEOPLE that they were “unable to provide any additional information at this time” on Tuesday evening.
According toTNR, Lochridge’s counterclaim alleged: “Given the prevalent flaws in the previously tested 1/3 scale model, and the visible flaws in the carbon end samples for the Titan, Lochridge again stressed the potential danger to passengers of the Titan as the submersible reached extreme depths."
The counterclaim alleged “the constant pressure cycling” would subsequently weaken any “existing flaws resulting in large tears of the carbon. Non-destructive testing was critical to detect such potentially existing flaws in order to ensure a solid and safe product for the safety of the passengers and crew.”
Lochridge alleged in his counterclaim that he was not the only employee who feared the safety of the vessel.
The counterclaim also alleged that “over the course of the next several days, Lochridge worked on his report and requested paperwork from the Engineering Director regarding the viewport design and pressure test results of the viewport for theTitan, along with other key information. Lochridge was met with hostility and denial of access to the necessary documentation that should have been freely available as part of his inspection process.”
According to the counterclaim, he claimed to voice his concerns and offered potential solutions to OceanGate management only to be allegedly ignored until a meeting was reportedly called in 2018 with the CEO, human resources director, engineering director, Lochridge, and the operations director,TNRreported.
Per the publication, the complaint further alleged: “At the meeting Lochridge discovered why he had been denied access to the viewport information from the Engineering department — the viewport at the forward of the submersible was only built to a certified pressure of 1,300 meters, although OceanGate intended to take passengers down to depths of 4,000 meters.”
“OceanGate refused to pay for the manufacturer to build a viewport that would meet the required depth of 4,000 meters,” the complaint alleged.
Per theirwebsite, expeditions to theTitanicsite began in the summer of 2023 with a total of 18 dives planned.
“Each team of 6 Mission Specialists will join the expedition for a 10-day mission (8 Days at Sea),” the website explained, as “the entire expedition is comprised of 5 mission legs.”
According to theBBC, a seat on the submersible costs each participant $250,000.
TheTitanlaunched Sunday before communication was lost between the submersible and the Canadian expedition vesselPolar Prince“approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes” into the dive, U.S. Coast Guard Captain Jamie Frederick said at a press conference on Tuesday.
The U.S. Coast Guard is conducting the search and rescue operation, in close collaboration with the Canadian Coast Guard, according toCBS News.
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“Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families,” said OceanGate in a statement toPEOPLE. “We are deeply grateful for the urgent and extensive assistance we are receiving from multiple government agencies and deep-sea companies as we seek to reestablish contact with the submersible. We pray for the safe return of the crew and passengers.”
source: people.com
