San Francisco Frontiers - Titanic sub disaster caused by operator failures: probe

The US Coast Guard investigation outlined a litany of issues with OceanGate's operations, as well as design flaws on its Titan submersible, that led to the high-profile disaster in which all five passengers were killed.

The probe said "OceanGate's failure to follow established engineering protocols for safety, testing, and maintenance of their submersible, was the primary causal factor" for the implosion.

It also accused the company of "intimidation tactics...to evade regulatory scrutiny."

OceanGate had a "toxic workplace environment which used firings of senior staff members and the looming threat of being fired to dissuade employees and contractors from expressing safety concerns," the report said.

- Explorers and tourists -

Company chief executive Stockton Rush, British explorer Hamish Harding, French deep-sea explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and Pakistani-British tycoon Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman died when the submersible failed on its expedition in the North Atlantic Ocean.

After a loss of communications with the sub, a multinational search for survivors started, captivating the world.

But occupants "were exposed to approximately 4,930 pounds per square inch of water pressure" when the hull collapsed, resulting in "instantaneous death," the report said.

Debris was found on the ocean floor, about 1,600 feet (500 meters) from the bow of the Titanic.

In its report, the Coast Guard said that OceanGate continued to use Titan "after a series of incidents that compromised the integrity of the hull and other critical components of the submersible without properly assessing or inspecting the hull."

It also identified design flaws with Titan's carbon fiber hull "that weakened the overall structural integrity."

The wreckage of the Titanic sits 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland and has become a lure for nautical experts and underwater tourists since its discovery in 1985.

The ship hit an iceberg and sank in 1912 during its maiden voyage from England to New York, with 2,224 passengers and crew on board. More than 1,500 people died.

H.King--SFF