'I'll miss my good friends,' record-breaking world explorer Victor Vescovo tweets about Titan submersible tragedy
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) - Victor Vescovo, the first explorer in history to reach both the top of all the world's continents and the bottom of all its oceans, has shared his sorrow about the loss of his friends on the Titan submersible.
It suffered a"catastrophic implosion," the Coast Guard said, killing all five people on board -- two of which Vescovo knew.
"This has been a difficult week for the submersible community," the Dallas businessman shared on Twitter. "Deep ocean diving is very safe when industry standard certifications and procedures are followed. I will miss my good friends PH Nargeolet, who I worked with closely, and Hamish Harding, my friend in sea and space."
A Canadian research vessel lost contact with the 21-foot sub an hour and 45 minutes into its dive Sunday morning about 900 nautical miles off the coast of Cape Cod. It was expected to resurface Sunday afternoon.
A Navy official said "an acoustic anomaly consistent with an implosion" was detected shortly after the Titan lost contact with the surface. This official said the information was relayed to the Coast Guard team, which used it to narrow the radius of the search area.
"We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost," Titan sub operator OceanGate said in a statement. "These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world's oceans. Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew."
