'There's No Bodies To Recover, The Implosion Is So Rapid' | Former US Navy Captain on Titanic Sub

Former US Navy Captain David Marquet tells TalkTV that people should not expect to find any remains following the deaths aboard the Titan submersible.

He warned that people underestimate the power of the sea, and speaking about the damage caused by an underwater implosion in the depths of the ocean he said: "I hate to say it but there's no bodies to recover. The implosion is so rapid."

When they say catastrophic implosion, it is a instantaneous destruction of the vessel and an instantaneous death for everyone on board."

James Cameron says he is “struck by the similarity” of the Titan submersible tragedy and the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.

The Hollywood director said many in the deep submergence engineering community had been “deeply concerned” about the OceanGate Expeditions craft that was reported missing on Sunday.

Cameron, who directed 1997 Oscar-winning film Titanic, has designed and built similar submersibles and had himself visited the wreckage of the famous ocean liner 33 times.

OceanGate announced on Thursday that the pilot and four passengers of the missing Titan submersible were believed to be dead.

The tail cone was found around 1,600ft from the bow of the Titanic, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1912.

[TemmieContingenC]

The guy they fired for calling this submersible a safety hazard must have a good few words for this company. Probably the biggest “I told you so” this year.

[Steav_]

I appreciate the fact that he said what no one else had the balls to say. “There are no bodies to be recovered”

[thewiseone]

The CEO said it himself "I want to be remembered for breaking the rules." Well, he achieved that at least.

[karolclark]

The guy who got fired for the warning must feel so relieved.
But he spoke up and got fired but in his heart, he knows he did the right thing. Those deaths are not on his consciousness and he knows he did everything he can to prevent it

[stevelux]

As an ex US Navy submariner I agree with everything said. This was a tragedy on several levels and appears that blatant incompetence and disregard for engineering and safety may well have played a factor.

[UsDiYoNa]

Being instantaneously emulsified seems a better option that being knowingly stuck on the bottom of the ocean waiting to die. Prayers to families.

[esthaaaaaa]

It’s oddly comforting to hear that the death was instantaneous and not a slow, painful one. Imagine being stuck in the abyss for hours knowing there’s no way out of this

[triggeredcat]

The guy that was fired for sounding off warnings for how badly designed this vessel was is free of blood guilt. The biggest “I told you so” of the decade.

[TheWutangclan]

Spoken like a true captain. Didn’t cater to anyones feelings other than telling us what happen. No sugarcoating or beating around the bush besides telling us, they’re dead.

[bluestar]

The US navy captain really hits the nail when he described what's left of a person subjected to 400X atmospheric pressure!

[elninorata]

This tragedy could have been avoided if the developer would have listened to engineers and would have gotten the proper certifications.

[GlitchedBlox]

He ignored the pressure test, but he can't ignore the ocean's pressure test.

[pewsandbrews]

Imagine being stuck for 3 days, in the freezing cold, no food or water, claustrophobic conditions. That would be a far worse death than the implosion that happened on descent.

[salmaal-shaoily]

And the 19 year old aunt said he didn't want to go, that he was terrified, but he went for his dad. Now that is tragic.

[viperviperpiro]

As a former submariner, I can attest to fact that their deaths were instant and painless - at those depths the pressure is so intense that the implosion tears/compacts the human body faster than the signals from pain receptors can reach the brain.

[tinad]

Feel sorry for the young boy that wanted to please his father and the families 😢

[lifealalexie]

Every news channel I watched these past few days kept listing an implosion as the worst case scenario. I honestly felt and still feel that, second only to them surviving and somehow being rescued, this was the best outcome.

It’s not a happy ending but it’s good to know they didn’t suffer. It sounds like it happened so fast they wouldn’t have even known what happened. That is so much better than slowly suffocating in the dark with little to no hope of rescue. RIP, and my prayers and condolences out to all the friends and loved ones left behind.

[Daybydayelevate]

I wasn’t a submariner, but I was on a carrier. One of the sayings we would say is “nomatter how mighty the vessel…. she is nowhere near as mighty as the deep blue herself.” RIP to the pioneers and explorers.

[StudioMod]

*For anyone who can't imagine what took place because they've never seen anything like it before:*
An implosion can be just as strong as an explosion. It was instant. All you would see if you were a few meters away watching the sub would be an enormous burst of bubbles and debris. The water instantly equalized with the pressure, but it was the air that killed them, not the water. The air pressure would have been similar to that of a concussive pulse wave from a large artillery shell... which vaporizes you. Like two magnets coming together, the physical reaction was faster than any nerve conduction velocity possible and their entire bodies were shredded into organic material dust in a single, very loud burst. The entire infrastructure was obliterated in under a half of a second.

...It would be interesting to recreate this implosion with another faulty sub and record the event with a sub that's actually capable of reaching those depths. It would help people understand more viscerally the dangers of ocean pressure equalizing all at once.

[t.ellevision]

This breaks my heart. I'm glad it was instant because literally waiting to suffocate would be terrifying, but it's still such a tragic event. Prayers for the family and friends they left behind🙏