U.S. Coast Guard update on missing Titanic tourist sub

The U.S. Coast Guard has provided an update on the search for a missing 21-foot submersible which was taking a small group of passengers to view the wreck of the Titanic.

Rear Adm. John Mauger said on a briefing on Monday night that the submersible had about 70 hours of oxygen left, assuming it’s still intact. Five people were on board when contact was lost on Sunday.

“We’re working very closely at this point to make sure that we’re doing everything that we can do to locate the submersible and rescue those on board,” Mauger said. “Our thoughts are with the crew members and the families of those on board the submersible.”

The sub was launched by the Canadian research vessel Polar Prince and lost contact during Sunday’s dive.

The RMS Titanic, once called “unsinkable” and at the time the world’s largest ship, sank in April 1912 when it struck an iceberg during its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City. More than 1,500 of the 2,224 people on board were killed, making it one of the deadliest marine disasters in history.

In August 2019, an international team of deep-sea explorers visited the wreck on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. It was the first manned dive to the ship in 14 years. Footage released back then showed that the condition of the wreckage was deteriorating.