© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Titanic’s port railing is located in 12,600 feet of water about 400 miles east of Nova Scotia as photographed earlier this month as part of a joint science expedition sponsored by Discovery Channel and RMS Titantic.
Written by Joseph Ax and Kanishka Singh
(Reuters) – U.S. and Canadian ships and aircraft on Monday searched for a sunken ship that went missing more than a day ago off the coast of southeastern Canada while taking tourists to explore the wreck of the Titanic, officials said.
The US Coast Guard said there was one pilot and four passengers on board and that the ship had the capacity to be submerged for 96 hours, but it was not clear if it was still underwater or had surfaced and could not have made contact.
U.S. and Canadian ships and aircraft swept the area about 900 miles (1,450 km) east of Cape Cod, Admiral John Mauger, the commander of the U.S. Coast Guard, told reporters Thursday, some dropping sonar buoys that can monitor down to 13,000 feet (3,962 meters). Monday.
“It’s a remote area and it’s difficult to do research in that remote area,” Mauger said.
“We are deploying every available asset to ensure that we can locate the vehicle and rescue the people on board,” he said. “Starting this evening, we will continue to fly planes and move additional ships,” he added.
Mauger said officials are also reaching out to merchant ships for help.
The private company that operates the submerged ship, OceanGate Expeditions, said in a statement Monday that it was “mobilizing all options” to rescue those on board.
British billionaire Hamish Harding was among the passengers, according to a post on social media by a relative.
Their family said in a statement that Pakistani businessman Shehzada Daoud and his son Suleiman were on board.
“We are very grateful for the concern expressed by our colleagues and friends and ask everyone to pray for their safety,” the statement said.
The US Coast Guard earlier said on Twitter that a surface boat — the Polar Prince — lost contact with the submersible vessel named Titan, about an hour and 45 minutes after it began diving toward the Titanic wreck site Sunday morning. .
“We are deeply grateful for the extensive assistance we have received from many government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to reconnect with the submarine,” said OceanGate.
Harding’s protégé wrote on Facebook (NASDAQ:) that Harding “disappeared on the submarine” and asked for “ideas and invitations.” The pair subsequently removed the post, citing respect for the family’s privacy.
Harding himself posted on Facebook that he would be on the submarine. There were no more posts from him. The expedition headed out to sea on Friday, and the first dive was scheduled for Sunday morning, according to Harding’s website.
According to the Dawood family statement, the father and son planned the trip to visit the remains of the Titanic wreck.
Daoud is the vice president of one of Pakistan’s largest conglomerates, Engro, which has investments in fertilizers, automotive manufacturing, energy and digital technologies. According to the website of SETI, the California-based research institute of which he is a trustee, he lives in Britain with his wife and two children.
The expeditions, which cost $250,000 per person, begin in St. John’s, Newfoundland, before heading 400 miles (640 km) into the Atlantic Ocean to the wreck site, according to the OceanGate website.
In order to visit the wreck, passengers climb inside Titan, the five-person submersible, which takes two hours to descend nearly 12,500 feet (3,800 meters) to the Titanic.
The British passenger liner famously sank in 1912 on its maiden voyage after colliding with an iceberg, killing more than 1,500 people. The story has been immortalized in fiction and non-fiction books as well as the 1997 movie “Titanic.”
(This story was paraphrased to change the word “submarine” to “submersible ship” in paragraphs 1, 7, and 12)