'All good here...

Last words of Titan crew on doomed dive | Lightning hit sub in 2018, hearing is told

- CHRISTOPHER BUCKTIN

THE public hearing into the fatal implosion of the Titan submersible has heard that the last report from its crew was: "All good here."

The underwater craft, operated by OceanGate, was crushed by deep-sea pressure with five men on board during a dive to see the wreck of the Titanic on June 18 last year. The hearing, which opened yesterday, was told that the Titan's crew communicated with staff on support vessel the Polar Prince via text message as it descended into the Atlantic.

They lost contact after repeated inquiries from those on the support vessel about the submersible's depth and weight as it sank.

Contact became spotty and ended with the three-word message, the hearing was told.

Coast Guard officials gave a damning overview of the history of the Titan, during which they stated that the hull of the craft was never subject to third-party checks. Officials also said the submersible had been left exposed to the elements while in storage for seven months in 2022 and 2023.