The tourist sub known as the Titan, which went missing taking high-paying tourists into the depths to see the wreckage of the Titanic, has more in common with the famous shipwreck than its name!
According to legal docs obtained by CBS MoneyWatch, in 2018 an employee of OceanGate was fired by the submarine tourism company after voicing his concerns with the submersible’s safety. David Lochridge then was sued by his former employers because he’d allegedly breached his contract by disclosing confidential info. The thing is, that confidential info was concerns over the sub’s safety issues — and he was disclosing them to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration! When a whistleblower filed a complaint with OSHA against the company, they immediately assumed it was Lochridge — and brought him straight to court over it.
In court, Lochridge argued he was wrongfully terminated, saying he was only expressing his concerns for the wellbeing of future passengers and ensuring their safety while aboard the vessel. Of course now it’s hard to argue — five years later, five people are missing in the North Atlantic on that very submarine. And one of those passengers is the CEO of OceanGate himself. Sounds like they should’ve listened!
Related: Friend Of Billionaire Lost In Titanic Sub Canceled Over Safety Concerns!
Sadly, this story is all too similar to the story of the ship they were so eager to see. The Titanic crashed into an iceberg and sank in 1912, causing the deaths of about 1,500 people. The Captain of the ship and crew members warned White Star Line boss Bruce Ismay that there were icebergs ahead and they should be cautious, but Ismay was pushing for the boat to speed through the waters and arrive to New York early, so he infamously ignored their warnings. Besides, they all thought the ship was invincible, with people reportedly saying at the time, “Not even God himself could sink this ship.”
The hubris of ignoring well-meaning safety concerns caused the most well-known maritime disaster of all time — and now it’s looking like OceanGate could suffer the same fate. They were told the Titan had issues but pushed ahead anyway. Did they really just want to get those $250,000 tickets sold that badly??
As of now, there’s still been no sign of the submarine, and searches are still underway. Their air supply is running out fast, though. The clock is ticking and the race to rescue these men is on.
Just tragic. We’re still holding out hope that the passengers are found safe and are able to be brought home to their loved ones.
[Image via OceanGate/Paramount Pictures/YouTube]
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