The Transportation Safety Board and the RCMP held back-to-back news conferences this afternoon to announce the formal start of their investigations into the loss of the Titan sub and its five passengers.
The submersible vehicle is believed to have suffered a “catastrophic implosion” likely during its descent to the wreck of the Titanic earlier this week.
This morning, the sub’s support vessel, the Polar Prince, arrived back in St. John’s with its crew.
The vessel docked at the Canadian Coast Guard pier on the south side of St. John’s, and was boarded a short time later by investigators with the Transportation Safety Board.
Then this afternoon, the head of the TSB, Kathy Fox, briefed reporters from around the world on next steps.
“This morning, TSB investigators boarded the Polar Prince to examine and document the vessel, to collect information from voyage data recorders, and other vessel systems that contain useful information,” she said, adding they’ve also begun interviewing everyone who was aboard the ship during the trip.
About an hour after that briefing, the RCMP held a news conference of its own at its headquarters in St. John’s.
RCMP Supt. Kent Osmond told reporters the national police force has initiated an investigation to determine if criminal charges are warranted in the case.
“Following the U.S. Coast Guard’s announcement earlier this week that debris from the submersible was located, and all five on board were presumed dead, we will now look at the circumstances that led to those deaths,” he said.
Osmond said no timelines have been established for that, but said they will provide an update when it’s determined if the larger investigation is required.
