(Photo by JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S Coast Guard says it found “presumed human remains” from the OceanGate Titan wreckage. This comes nearly two weeks after it disappeared. An investigation into the tragedy has moved to the highest level.
The remains likely belong to one or more of the submersible’s deceased passengers. The list includes world explorer Hamish Harding, French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, father and son, Shahzada and Sulaiman Dawood, and Stockton Rush, the founder of OceanGate Expeditions.
U.S. medical professionals will now analyze the remains to positively identify them, according to a Coast Guard press release.
Meanwhile, Coast Guard Capt. Jason Neubauer says that he has ordered the Marine Board of Investigation to analyze what authorities call a “catastrophic implosion” that left the five men dead.
Neubauer, who is leading the investigation, added that the probe could possibly lead to civil and even criminal sanctions in “several international jurisdictions.”
“The evidence will provide investigators from several international jurisdictions with critical insights into the cause of this tragedy,” Neubauer said.
The Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) will evaluate the wreckage debris as evidence collection continues. Additionally, the agency will also be interviewing witnesses as a part of its investigation.
On Wednesday, the evidence, which includes the possible human remains, arrived in Canada, according to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
Canadian transport officials, as well as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), will be conducting their own investigations of the Titan’s mother ship, the Polar Prince.
The Polar Prince has since been sent to the TSB Engineering Laboratory in Ottawa for further analysis, the agency reports.
The RCMP said the investigation will determine if “criminal, federal or provincial laws may possibly have been broken.”
Meanwhile, the debris of the submersible is now in the possession of the U.S. Coast Guard as of Thursday.
The Titan lost contact shortly after descending into the North Atlantic to explore the Titanic wreck on June 18.
Both U.S. and Canadian investigations remain ongoing. However, the Coast Guard says “still a substantial amount of work to be done” before filing any possible charges.
“There is still a substantial amount of work to be done to understand the factors that led to the catastrophic loss of the TITAN and help ensure a similar tragedy does not occur again.”
This is a developing story. Be sure to check back in with The Shade Room for more updates as they come.
