A “toxic workplace culture” contributed to the implosion of the Titan submersible, according to a damning report by the US Coast Guard.
Five people died when the Titan imploded during a mission to the wreck of the Titanic.
The wreckage of the submersible was found on the ocean floor five days after it went missing on June 18, 2023, about 500 metres from the sunken Titanic.
The dead included Titan operator Stockton Rush, who founded OceanGate, the company that owned the submersible; Pakistani Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman; British adventurer Hamish Harding; and Titanic expert and the sub’s pilot, Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
In its Report of Investigation (ROI) released on Tuesday, the US Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) concluded that “the loss of five lives was preventable”.
The 335-page report identified eight “primary causal factors” that led to the fatal implosion.
The report criticised OceanGate’s design and testing processes and the continued use of the Titan submersible despite “a series of incidents that compromised the integrity of the hull and other critical components”.
The board also cited “a toxic workplace culture at OceanGate, an inadequate domestic and international regulatory framework for submersible operations and vessels of novel design, and an ineffective whistleblower process”.
The report concludes that Mr Rush “exhibited negligence that contributed to the deaths of four individuals”.
It adds that the investigation “identified evidence of a potential criminal offense” and Rush “may have been subject to criminal liability”.
Authored by lead investigator Thomas Whalen and marine board chairman Jason Neubauer, it read: “For several years preceding the incident, OceanGate leveraged intimidation tactics, allowances for scientific operations, and the company’s favourable reputation to evade regulatory scrutiny.
“By strategically creating and exploiting regulatory confusion and oversight challenges, OceanGate was ultimately able to operate Titan completely outside of the established deep-sea protocols, which had historically contributed to a strong safety record for commercial submersibles.
“The lack of both third-party oversight and experienced OceanGate employees on staff during their 2023 Titan operations allowed OceanGate’s chief executive officer to completely ignore vital inspections, data analyses, and preventative maintenance procedures, culminating in a catastrophic event.”
A spokesperson OceanGate said in a statement: “We again offer our deepest condolences to the families of those who died on June 18, 2023, and to all those impacted by the tragedy.
“After the tragedy occurred, the company permanently wound down operations and directed its resources fully towards cooperating with the Coast Guard's inquiry through its completion.”
