HALIFAX — Two years before the Titan submersible imploded south of Newfoundland, killing five people, Canada’s Fisheries Department sent a letter of support to the sub’s American owner, the U.S. Coast Guard says in a report released Tuesday.
The 300-page investigation report says the sinking was preventable.
It says the company responsible for organizing the trip, OceanGate, mishandled the vessel's construction and its preparation leading up to the deepsea accident that attracted international attention.
The small sub was on its way to the Titanic shipwreck when it broke apart near the bottom of the ocean, almost 700 kilometres south of Newfoundland on June 18, 2023. Among those killed was OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush.
The report says Rush ignored safety warnings and design flaws that could have resulted in criminal charges — had he survived. Investigators also found that the submersible’s certification and inspection process were all inadequate.
As for the Fisheries Department, the report says it sent a letter to Rush in May 2021, saying the department planned to work with his company to assess the potential of its submersibles for scientific research.
“DFO supports and advances marine conservation across the country … with the stated goal of increasing protected areas and advancing scientific research," the report quotes the letter as saying.
According to the report, the letter goes on to say OceanGate's equipment could offer Canadian scientists a unique opportunity to explore deepwater ecosystems, something that wasn't possible with existing Canadian technology.
As well, the letter says the department could contribute funds for future expeditions.
"DFO would like to conduct further discussions in the fall to identify and secure opportunities to use the submersibles in priority sites off Canada in 2022 and beyond," the letter says.
And the letter suggests that an employee of DFO could participate in an upcoming dive, the coast guard says.
"However, while this individual was listed as a passenger for the 2021 expedition, the DFO representative was not recorded in the 2021 expedition dive logs as participating as a crew member on a Titan dive," the report says.
Besides the letter of support, the coast guard’s investigation found no evidence of any actual collaboration or funding.
The Canadian department said Tuesday it would respond to a request for comment, but it had yet to do so by late in the afternoon.
Meanwhile, the report also found that when the submersible was put into storage in St. John's, N.L., in July 2022, the conditions at a waterfront facility were "substandard."
"Instead of being stored in a protected environment, the Titan and its ... boxes were placed in the facility’s parking lot, uncovered and exposed to the elements," the report says,
"Based on weather data ... the Titan's hull would have been subjected to multiple freeze and thaw cycles during its time stored outside .... OceanGate’s continued neglect of the submersible’s physical care is alarming."
On another front, the coast guard report describes how in late 2022, Rush was trying to get Memorial University of Newfoundland to sign an agreement that would exempt OceanGate from paying sales taxes.
“To qualify for the exemption, the (OceanGate) expedition was required to be conducted or sponsored by a recognized scientific or cultural organization,” the report says, adding that an agreement was signed in December 2022 with the university’s Fisheries and Marine Institute.
In September 2023, The Canadian Press obtained documents showing the agreement allowed OceanGate to store its equipment at the institute in St. John's.
The documents, obtained through access to information laws, revealed that OceanGate had promised students and faculty would be given the opportunity "to join OceanGate expeditions to support research endeavours."
The memorandum of understanding also said the institute would show off OceanGate's submersible to promote ocean literacy and the "blue economy."
Rob Shea, then the Marine Institute’s vice-president, sent an email to Rush in July 2022, saying the institution's "proverbial doors ... are open!" to OceanGate.
In September 2023, a Memorial University spokesperson said there were no formal plans for students or staff to board the Titan. "With no plans for students or staff to be aboard the Titan, there was no rationale to vet OceanGate,” Chad Pelley said in a statement.
In addition to Rush, the implosion killed French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, British adventurer Hamish Harding and two members of a prominent Pakistani family, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has conducted its own investigation into Titan's demise. In June, the independent board confirmed its investigation report had been drafted and was being reviewed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 5, 2025.
With files from The Associated Press
Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press
