The Transport Safety Board of Canada (TSB) said it is reviewing all relevant documents, interviews and materials it has collected as part of its safety investigation of the Titan submarine and Canada-tagged support vessel Polar Prince.
On June 18, about an hour and a half from the Titanic’s wreckage site, the Titan lost contact with the Polar Prince, which helped launch the submarine, and sank, killing all five passengers and crew.
Canadian and U.S. officials announced an investigation into the ill-fated expedition last week, and the TSB said the independent investigation would focus on “the circumstances of this operation conducted by the Canadian-flagged vessel Polar Prince.”
In a news release on Thursday, TSB said it had completed gathering relevant documents, completed pre-interviews with the crew of the Polar Prince, and sent the support vessel’s voyage data recorders to a laboratory in Ottawa for further analysis. .
The federal agency also said it had “examined, documented and cataloged” the Titan wreckage that was recovered from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean by the U.S. Coast Guard and arrived at St. John’s Harbor on Thursday. The U.S. Coast Guard announced Wednesday that it had found “presumed human remains” in the wreckage.
The TSB said it would review all this information in the coming weeks and gather additional information as part of an “independent safety-focused” investigation. The investigation aims to find out “all the causes and contributing factors” of the accident. Attribution of Liability or Civil or Criminal Liability.
“This will allow us to focus on addressing safety deficiencies and preventing similar incidents from recurring,” the agency added.
“TSB will continue to cooperate in accordance with international agreements, as the United States, the United Kingdom and France are ‘substantial interested parties’ under international agreements,” he said. International Maritime Organization Casualty Investigation Rules“
The Polar Prince had a crew of 17 and 24, five of whom were on board the Titan, which sank en route to the Titanic, about 700 kilometers southeast of Newfoundland, according to TSB.
With files from Canadian Press
