If conducting a search of an immense area in international waters as a drill were the optimal use of the Coast Guard’s resources, then this drill would already have been on their agenda. They had plans for this time and fuel that they thought were better, and those didn’t happen. It’s reckless and selfish to abuse those resources; that’s the most charitable language I can use for OceanGate’s actions.
That’s all well and good for HIS risk. The 10 million page waiver did not cover the risks to other people’s lives and money when he needs rescue. He should waive THAT.
From what I read the implosion “heard” by the Navy is from a continuous graphing device. Basically a blip on a graph. So they got a blip but not necessarily knew what it was from until afterwards when it could be timed to the missing sub. And the Coast Guard said they wouldn’t have stopped the search anyways based on a graph.
The company supposedly fired a sub commander (some articles said engineer) they had hired over his safety warnings about the sub integrity (lawsuit in 2018). Hard to not want integrity testing when the material used to build the sub was tested to 1300m and the Titanic dive is at 4000m.
There are some confusing reports but it sounds like while this sub had done a previous dive that it also had to undergo repairs when they had to manually docked it in heavy seas on a previous trip (hard to get the story straight–but it’s all very sad.
(And don’t jump into a self-driving car expecting the car to do all the work…)
There is long tradition of rendering aid to those in distress at sea. Sometimes that aid is even extended to whales that are stuck behind ice. Only on CC do we place monetary limits on who should be offered aid and compassion.
Disagree on the value of the article and its discussion of legalities. Sure, the US & UK have passed laws regarding the Titanic. But the ship is in deep international waters, and any such law applies only to US & UK companies/citizens. In other words, US/UK law does not apply to citizens of other countries in open international waters. So, any future dive company can just incorporate in Canada or France or the Bahamas or…and can just ignore teh US Feds.
(And this why I disagree that more US regulation is needed – it is unrealistic to be able to regulate the behavior of the countries.)
People do it all the time on much smaller and less grand scales–skiing when there is chance of avalanche or tree skiing, hiking in wilderness areas, rock climbing, mountain climbing, sailing around the world, car racing etc. And everytime someone needs rescuing puts somebody else in danger–the ski patrol, the helicopter pilot, the search patrol. So to be unprepared by lack of training, poor equipment is really the height of arrogance to put others lives at risk in case you need saving.
And that’s what this amounted to–pure arrogance on Rush’s part. If he had done this as a solo trip then so be it. He ignored the safety warnings and knew of them. But he dragged innocent people in with him and that was inconscionable. I see him more as a con artist than an explorer.
That tradeoff is made every single day by every country, and this case is no different. There are many good causes that require resources; we pick and choose where to deploy those resources. IMO this was a foolish expenditure for a small number of people engaged in frivolous pursuits.
Here are interviews by ABC News with Bob Ballard, the person who discovered Titanic in 1985, and James Cameron, director of Titanic and many other movies.
Both are extremely accomplished deep-sea explorers. I didn’t realize Cameron was as experienced as he is. He had been down to Titanic 33 times and also to the world’s deepest point in the Mariana Trench (Challenger Deep) in the Pacific, designing the vehicle.
They qualify as experts in any sense of the word:
They are deeply critical of OceanGate.
Also, on the point of regulation, there is ex ante regulation (regulation before, for example, licensing, certifications, inspections etc) and ex post regulation (after the fact regulation.)
Ex post regulation can also include civil and criminal litigation, and I’ve seen articles suggesting it is possible that both could occur in relation to OceanGate.
I think you will find that many people, likely the majority, object to this use of public resources. You are always free to spend your private resources as you wish
Everytime you get in your private car on a personal trip to the store, you assume the risk that some idiot runs a red light and t-bones you. Yet, we still then use public (or volunteer) resources of the fire department to extricate you from the wreck and transport you to county hospital.
I dont think it has anything to do with income. It has to do with the large price tag ( tens of millions of dollars), the small number of victims (5) and the voluntary assumption of risk in this highly dangerous activity.
In contrast, a mass transit crash ( an airplane, a ferry) would warrant larger expenses in rescue attempts. Similarly, the costs involved in car crash rescues are relatively minor and usually offset by one’s taxes to the town in support thereof.
I knew that Cameron was on multiple Titanic dives but did not hear anything about his Mariana Trench exploration. My hat’s off to him. Apparently, the late Paul Allen was one of the sponsors of that dive. Fascinating. Also, every dive seems to have a scientific component to it. The trek into the real life abyss was collecting samples of life at those depths. Brought back some bacteria and even invertebrates!
That said, regarding Cameron’s claims that he knew with 100% certainty that the Titan was doomed because all communications were lost and he too heard the implosion sound… anyone can be right after the fact. If there was an alternative explanation (such as loss of communication due to battery failures), rescue was justified. It was quickly called off when it was clear the Titan was gone.
Let’s step back a minute. Prior to, say Monday morning, how many of us had ever heard of OceanGate or Stockton Rush? I sure hadn’t.
But OceanGate is an American company, and Mr. Rush was an American citizen. Why did France get involved? Probably because Mr. Nargeolet, who I understand was absolutely legendary, was from France.
Citizenship alone is one reason for countries to assist. And the reasons I asked how many of us heard about Titan or OceanGate until this tragedy is that I doubt the Coast Guard could make the assessment that we are now making: OceanGate appears to have really cut corners. I am sure most of us learned this during the week. That couldn’t be the trigger for the US to render aid.
If that had been me, a loved one, or a friend on the Titan, I would have fully expected the US forces to rescue. Just because I didn’t know these people, or that they were French, British, Pakistani, and/or American, doesn’t change my view that the US and the other countries, with both public and private resources, tried to save lives.
Civilized countries render aid all the time, even to non-citizens. There was a search-and-rescue, where time was seemingly of the essence. That ended on Thursday morning (US/Canadian time), when it was clear that the vessel had imploded.
I am happy to have our forces assist when a tragedy is unfolding. There is a time for recrimination afterwards.
“There hasn’t been an injury in the commercial sub industry in over 35 years. It’s obscenely safe, because they have all these regulations. But it also hasn’t innovated or grown—because they have all these regulations,” Rush said in an interview that appeared in a June 2019 issue of Smithsonian Magazine.
And on a November 2022 “Unsung Science” podcast hosted by CBS correspondent David Pogue, Rush said exploration comes with innate risk.
“At some point, safety just is pure waste. I mean, if you just want to be safe, don’t get out of bed,” he said. “Don’t get in your car. Don’t do anything. At some point, you’re going to take some risk, and it really is a risk/reward question. I think I can do this just as safely by breaking the rules.”
Telling. I didn’t read or hear anywhere that anyone was telling him that taking the risk was the problem–it was his ignoring the physics of the materials he was using and his engineering design that had major flaws. Hard to float a lead raft no matter how well built.
Unlimited resources to assist those who voluntarily placed themselves in danger? Nope. I can think of far better uses for the money to actually help deserving people.
No doubt Jeff Bezos would like your policy, though-all sorts of space trips can go wrong for all sorts of reasons requiring potential rescue.
I think he also had several sources in the deep-sea expedition community filling him in on details. Earlier, I asked the question of whether the search was a “charade.” Apparently, Cameron came right out and said it, calling it a “nightmarish charade.”
Cameron is known for being direct and abrasive. Perhaps he knew it, but until it was clear what happened, I think the US and other countries were right to continue searching until it was clear there was no one to rescue.
We don’t develop technologies and use public resources to save those stuck on Mt. Denali… there is no value to humanity in that. I’m
sure there will be deep sea rescue lessons learned from this effort. It was not an exercise in futility. The US Navy doesn’t say much, but I’m sure it got some valuable information out of this.
I do not agree of the use of public money for this either. I understand that for whatever reason society has a fascination with ultra-rich people (it seems they are considered special to put it nicely). There are many issues affecting many, many people. The default should be the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
I am for using all the resources to rescue them. After all, we are all humans and make mistakes. However, I believe the government should seek 100% reimbursement from their families who have plenty of $$. Even better, their families should volunteer on their own to reimburse for all the expenses (I am dreaming, of course).
I can think of many causes that are more worthy: public education K - 12 is one example. I don’t understand how spending so much public resources for the rescue is beneficial to society for the greatest number and the greatest good. We have limited resources.
(3D Animation) - YouTube
