Yesterday, I wrote about the terrifying case of the missing OceanGate Titan, a submersible that takes tourists some 13,000 feet under the sea to view the Titanic wreck.
We know a few more details today.
Confirmed onboard the craft is:
- Stockton Rush, the 61 year old founder and CEO of OceanGate.
- Hamish Harding, a 58 year old British billionaire businessman that has gone into space with Blue Origin and has set 3 world records in the air and underseas.
- Shahzada Dawood, a 48 year old Pakistani/British billionaire businessman from one of Pakistan’s wealthiest families.
- Suleman Dawood, 19 year old son of Shahzada.
- Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a 77 year old French maritime expert who has been on over 3 dozen dives to the Titanic and director of RMS Titanic Inc, owner of the Titanic’s salvage rights.
The dive operation started on Sunday at 10:30am Newfoundland NDT time, which is 90 minutes ahead of EDT. Communication ceased at 1:17pm NDT and the vessel failed to resurface when it was expected to at 7:40pm NDT.
The Titan has about 96 hours of oxygen onboard via onboard CO2 scrubbers and oxygen tanks, so time for a rescue is rapidly coming to an end.
At 1pm EDT today, the US Navy said that the ship has about 40 hours of breathable air left. The sub can’t be opened from the inside, so even if it surfaces, it must be located in order to open it and provide fresh air for its occupants.
As I mentioned yesterday, the greatest look and insight into the Titan and the Titan’s owner was provided by CBS correspondent and tech journalist David Pogue, who was invited on a dive down to the Titanic last year:
Mr. Pogue has shared more information on his Twitter feed, and there are a number of inconsistencies to the episode.
I guess that’s to be expected on a comped trip? Still, a puff piece that contributes to downplaying safety concerns is highly problematic.
In the episode, it’s implied that he was onboard when they made it to the Titanic, though that didn’t actually happen.
The show states that there were communication issues for 2.5 hours. Mr. Pogue said yesterday that it was actually 5 hours and that there was no beacon locator onboard the sub.
This submersible does not have any kind of beacon like that. On my expedition last summer, they did indeed get lost for about 5 hours, and adding such a beacon was discussed…
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 19, 2023
He also said that he was not onboard that lost sub last year and that the surface ship turned off its internet so that the information about the loss of communications would not be Tweeted. That information was omitted on the show.
To be clear, I was not on the sub that day—I was on the ship at the surface, in the control room. They could still send short texts to the sub, but did not know where it was. It was quiet and very tense, and they shut off the ship’s internet to prevent us from tweeting.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 19, 2023
That lost ship surfaced on its own after several hours:
Yes, and that is eventually what it did. But the passengers had paid $250,000 to see the titanic, so they felt obligated to spend a few hours trying to find the Titanic!
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
In the episode, they identify Renata Rojas as someone who saved up for 30 years to afford the trip and would rather the trip than buying a Ferrari or a house, but Mr. Pogue now writes that he didn’t expect that she was in the lost ship as she works for OceanGate and is not a paying passenger? Color me confused.
I was emailing Renata this week. She is definitely on board the SHIP for this expedition… we don’t know if she was on the SUB. But I’d say almost certainly not; since this was the first dive of the week, it was for paying customers only. (She works for OceanGate.)
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
While the episode mentions not being able to communicate with the sub last year, Mr. Pogue writes that it was actually able to communicate, but was not able locate the sub.
No, really not the same situation. Last year, they could communicate with the lost sub…this year, it seems not.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 19, 2023
Interestingly, OceanGate advisor David Concannon, who was supposed to be on the mission, says that a loss of communications is not a big deal at all, though the loss of location, as happened last year, is a big deal. But if this just happened last year, why would they risk additional missions without identifying and fixing the issue?
Mr. Concannon says that the government can be doing more for the rescue, but is held up by paperwork.
While most underwater vessels carry a locating beacon, there was none on the Titan. During the 5 hour incident last year, adding one was discussed, but shockingly that was never done. This wasn’t discussed in the episode and that’s very surprising given that they lost the sub for 5 hours!
This submersible does not have any kind of beacon like that. On my expedition last summer, they did indeed get lost for about 5 hours, and adding such a beacon was discussed…
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 19, 2023
There was no tether between the surface ship and the sub, which could have been a potential fix to the previous loss of the sub.
There is no tether. They do, however, say that the sub has 96 hours’ worth of oxygen.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 19, 2023
OceanGate assumed that with so many methods of surfacing, it didn’t need to have emergency contingency plans.
Of course that ignores what would happen if it got stuck on the Titanic or in a fishing net.
There are hydraulic, electric, and mechanical ways to rise. For example, they can drop sand bags. They can dump heavy lead construction pipes. They can jettison the legs. They can use the propellers. They can inflate an air bladder.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
What was mentioned in the episode, was that the sub was not inspected or certified by anyone:
Not in this case. The Titanic is in international waters, so the OceanGate sub has not been licensed, inspected, or certified by any external body.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
As I wrote yesterday, the sub was operated by a Logitech video game controller that was available for $29.99 on Amazon yesterday, but has now sold out. It has 4.2 star reviews, with a common complaint being that the wireless connection is flaky. The controller was released 13 years ago.
What could possibly go wrong with that?
Yes, XBox game controllers have been used even by the military, though this wasn’t even an XBox controller. And in those other uses, they were for various accessories, not for operating the actual steering of the ship!
Who hasn’t had issues with anything wireless? It can be tough to connect headphones at times, but my life isn’t dependant on that.
It’s wireless. (Lower right.) pic.twitter.com/2XKCQcCZni
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
While the show does ask questions to CEO Stockton Rush, it feels too much like a puff piece, as you’d expect to be written for a comped trip.
However a puff piece on a comped meal or hotel stay for a social media influencer is very different than when the reviewed product is a matter of life or death. You’d think some of the information that is coming out now like the lack of a locator beacon or that the surface boat cut off the internet when they had a similar issue last year. That means that even if the ship does surface, they will still run out of oxygen unless they’re located. It seems criminal that it doesn’t have a locator beacon or escape hatch.
The ship seems far more dangerous than the CBS episode led one to believe and I sure hope it didn’t get people to sign up for the journey without realizing the extent of the danger.
I don’t think Mr. Pogue was getting paid. But when you get offered a $250,000 trip for free, it’s only natural for the coverage to be different than a trip that you or your company pays for.
If that’s industry standard then it says something about today’s journalism. And the Gell-Mann amnesia effect is always applicable.
That’s not how journalism works, my friend.
— David Pogue (@Pogue) June 20, 2023
CEO Stockton Rush previously said that industry regulations made underseas innovation impossible.
Smithsonian called him a daredevil inventor.
But with seemingly no backup plan if his sub got caught in something miles under the surface, it seems more reckless than daredevil.
I can’t even imagine what is happening on that sub now and my heart goes out to the passengers. Let’s just pray for a miracle to happen and that the Titanic won’t claim another 5 victims, some 111 years after she sank.
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59 Comments On "Less Than 38 Hours Left For Titan’s Air Supply; The CBS Sunday Morning Report On OceanGate’s Titan Submersible Was A Misleading Puff Piece"
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You may wanna screenshot all these quoted tweets in case he deletes
True. Lawsuits incoming.
dan’s reporting on stories like this is lowkey one of the best values on deal websites these days..
Dan is the GOAT
This is beyond ridiculous!
Your reporting on this is better than what I’m reading in the mainstream media. Thanks for sharing!
+1
They should have bought an airtag when dan posted it a few weeks ago on sale
+1
Were there no disclaimers, signed forms, warnings? To blame a media report seems extremely ridiculous. I hope everyone makes it out ok but there is no way they were not informed of the risks.
It is mentioned in the CBS David Pogue story. He reads the disclaimer to the camera before he signs it.
is there a bathroom on the sub?
It is mentioned in the CBD David Pogue story. They have a urinal bottle and a sort of bucket with a toilet seat on top.
I was also thinking about that and who says that there’s any food or water. I didn’t see any news about that?
Sort of, watch the video in this post.
Sure.And shower too.
Passenger saving up for 30 years?? This company has only been doing this for less than 5 years. This wasn’t even possible for the private sector until then
How ironic that the Titanic was mostly exclusive for wealthy people, and this mission was the same. Something about the Titanic takes down wealthy people… creepy.
What are you talking about? The titanic was full of lower class citizens. The wealthy are the ones who got onto boats first. Adiraba
Great reporting Dan! The rich guys on board could have saved $250k and be alive now rather than in a crushed tin can at the bottom of the ocean.
Haters will hate…….
They should have listened to the REAL journalists at Fox and the NY Post, and put their money into Trump University.
Carl, you can make this about republican vs. democrat. CBS was the outlet which had the puff piece. ABC Good Morning America was the outlet where a family member of one of the explorers asked for ABC to discontinue their efforts to sensationalize this tragic situation. As a lawyer you should be familiar with sticking with facts.
Dan, I’m not trying to play gotcha, but I commented when you took the free first class flights from El Al with your family I commented that the free trip might have colored your view even if you didn’t want it to.
Now you are saying a similar thing about Pogue, and I agree with you.
1. I wasn’t comped, I paid for the seats and got upgraded.
2. I said that then, https://www.dansdeals.com/points-travel/trip-notes/trip-notes-flying-el-al-dreamliner-jfk-tel-aviv-first-el-al-flight/#comment-1577007
3. Deciding to fly El Al or United isn’t a matter of life and death.
Failing to disclose massive flaws discovered in an underwater sub on the other hand certainly is. Who would have gone if they knew the full story?
Puff piece shmuff piece. Does Dan’s Deals have any offers on this trip I can use, and double by promising to buy multiple times and then canceling. I want BARGAINS! Tell me how I can connive to get BARGAINS! Hannitwit is a journalist, and Dan is a bargain maven.
A $250,000 burial next to Titanic-nice “BARGAIN”. Doubt the deal is still alive though. Sad. Thanks Dan for your wonderful quality piece of journalism as usual.
If you took the time to read this story and post a comment as opposed to simply scrolling past this story in search of more deals, you clearly are not THAT focused on deals
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/titanic-submersible-missing-searchers-heard-banging-1234774674/
The CBS reporter David Pogue also has a podcast called Unsung Science. He has two episodes on his trip called back to the titanic where he gets into a lot more detail than the video clip. Worth listening too, lots of interesting information there.
I went back and forth w/Pogue a bit on the youtube comments after the story came out. To be honest, beyond the safety issues, it just seemed like a company was catering to the whims of a bunch of rich people and their desire to putter around what is basically a mass grave. No oversight whatsoever, you don’t know who’s disturbing the wreck or taking things. Seems sketchy, and the safety issues are just another level.
If there was only one person aboard how many hours of oxygen would he have in the submersible? If 1 person were to kill the other 4 ppl aboard, would it significantly prolong his chance of getting saved?
Oof that’s is creepy but interesting views and question. My thoughts as to what the 19 year old is going through the fear and possible insanity is terrifying. I hope there is some good to come out from this story
It’s a morbid but interesting question. Each person, under resting conditions, uses about 250 ml/min of oxygen, or about 600,000 ml per 24 h. But factors like anxiety (likely to be extreme) and shivering could increase it dramatically. if the electrical systems have failed it is going to be very cold inside, and hypothermia becomes likely. This can slow down the use of oxygen. The media is reporting the # of hours of oxygen left, but it is hard to answer the question without knowing the # and capacity of oxygen tanks on board. Carbon dioxide also has to be considered. As the CO2 absorbers are used up, CO2 levels will build up in the bloodstream, and when they reach 100 mm Hg, or about 2.5x normal, the passengers will experience drowsiness and eventually unconsciousness. The fewer people alive, the more availability of O2 and the less CO2 there will be in the ambient air.
yes, because the oxygen supply numbers are counting the emergency oxygen tanks that each person would wear…
It’s very possible the oxygen tanks have failed, or have leaked oxygen. I believe the number of days they have provided is a best case scenario with all systems working properly.
#OceanGateGate scandall
Anyone know how much food /water is on board?
There’s plenty of water down there
Very funny, but saltwater actually makes you thirstier. Plus, you know, no access to the outside.
As for food… Well, they can always have a Donner Party! (That’s probably crossing a line.)
Dan your reporting on these topics is always EXCELLENT and I genuinely appreciate it. It is always straightforward, well sourced, and easy to understand. I think you should consider starting a news blog. There is a massive lack of this kind of journalism in this day and age
Appreciate it, thanks.
And I agree, that today’s media is very disappointing. I’d guess the reason it’s all so superficial and inaccurate is that it wouldn’t be profitable to research stories like I do. And there are factors that preclude giving the whole picture, such as with CBS.
I’m a dan fan but disagree on this one. Screenshots of tweets trying to expose a journalist who did a feature story is —while mildly interesting and worth asking David about — not consequential research to me. If today’s media is so disappointing, then the wonder of the internet is that nothing is stopping anyone from doing a better job. Get on the phone with David to get his story. Blaming him for some rich people deciding to go on a risky adventure is a huge stretch.
David has said his story in writing and it’s very different than the CBS show which was basically a cover-up for an unsafe operation IMHO.
They are likely dead by now. There is no food or water with them. I’m not sure why that fact isn’t discussed by the media.
Food and water can be rationed. That would not be the cause of death.
They were going on an 8 hour trip, cautioned not to eat, drink or bring a lot of food so they don’t need the restroom. They brought maximum a small 16 oz Poland spring of water each. It’s 3.5 days by now.
Where do you see that they brought just a 16oz bottle of water?
There is a makeshift restroom onboard.
That’s what I imagine someone would take on an 8 hour trip with no real restroom (as per oceangate recommendation not to take much so as not to need the bathroom)
I don’t think they took a cumulative gallon.
I was thinking the same as Ugg. How much food and water would they have brought with them? After a couple of days without water, you are deceased. If they have medical conditions, such as diabetes, it’s nearly 100% likely deceased.
The average person should last at least between 8 and 21 days without food and water
Do you have a source for that? Without water, 3 days is the maximum according to most medical sources online.
Don’t believe the first thing that pops up on Google. Most medical sources warn that after 3 days death can occur. However, they do say that a decently healthy person who is not doing much activity can go for about a week without any food or water, and over a month without any food. The (known) world record was apparently a guy in Austria who went 18 days without any food or water.
https://svalbardi.com/blogs/water/living-without
That is not an extreme outlier. There have been many other documented cases of people going a long time without food, water, or both. Gandhi, for example, did a 21-day (food) fast when he was 74.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fasts_undertaken_by_Mahatma_Gandhi
The record holder for no solid food is over a year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angus_Barbieri%27s_fast
Practically speaking, this is not a subject that gets a lot of high-quality research due to the ethical issues with starving people to the brink of death. Guinness does not declare new records in this category due to the danger. Most research on the topic is from observations during end-of-life care, which obviously does not translate well to a broad swath of the population.
I can personally attest to someone going 103 hours with no food or drink, and 152 hours with no food (just tap water after day 4) without any prior preparation (such as a large meal or excessive water beforehand). It is extremely unsafe and I would strongly advise people not to do it!!! But it is doable.
As Just Curious noted above, they could kill off some of the group to extend the oxygen for the others. As for food/water, they could cannibalize the dead. (Gruesome, but if the other option is death…) Realistically, their biggest issues are probably (in order) hypothermia, hypoxia, and dehydration, layered with specific medical conditions (e.g. diabetes), insanity/homicide/suicide, electrocution, fire, and implosion. (Although implosion would likely have been picked up on sonar.) I wouldn’t consider starvation to be a major risk – they are pretty much guaranteed to be dead long before that.
Thanks for this kind of posts love it
Next you’re going to tell me that they didn’t have enough lifeboats…
Hate to say this, but it could take weeks or more to find the vessel, your talking about i tiny blip in 2.5 mile deep ocean in middle of no where, if they didn’t resurface than chances are they are on the bottom somewhere which i would think make it much harder to detect with sonar
Billionaires and multi-millionaires are down there. This reminds me of the parable of the richest greedy man on earth getting locked in his safe with billions of dollars worth of diamonds, gold, and silver. All of that becomes worth less than 1 cracker/1 cup of water.
Reminds me of the MH lost aircraft. You give details not found anywhere.
It is possible that is had already surfaced but there is no way to find it?