Guillermo Söhnlein, co-founder of OceanGate, expressed during a Coast Guard hearing on Monday that the reason behind the Titan submersible tragedy, which resulted in the deaths of five individuals, might never be uncovered.

He remarked to the panel that “this was not meant to occur.”

Söhnlein provided testimony on the fifth day of hearings that seek to determine the factors leading to the disastrous implosion of the Titan submersible, which killed all five passengers on board.

“I am unsure what transpired,” he stated. “I do not know who made which decisions when, and on what basis. Honestly, I am uncertain if any of us will ever have answers, despite the thorough investigations being conducted by your team.”

The hearings are taking place in North Charleston, South Carolina, with live coverage available on the U.S. Coast Guard channel.

The Titan submersible imploded two miles below the surface on June 18, 2023. Its wreck was discovered approximately 330 yards from the Titanic’s bow, with all five occupants—Stockton Rush, the pilot and founder of OceanGate Expeditions, along with a British billionaire, a French explorer, a Pakistani-born businessman, and his son—perishing in the incident.

Söhnlein co-founded OceanGate with Rush in 2009, aiming to make the deep ocean accessible to everyone.

Passengers, referred to as “mission specialists,” paid $250,000 for their tickets.

The company envisioned operating a fleet of four to five submersibles capable of reaching depths of up to three and a half miles under the ocean, transporting as many as five passengers each, according to Söhnlein. Founded in Everett, Washington, he parted ways with the company in 2013, but remained a minority shareholder and maintained close ties with Rush.

Ending his testimony, Söhnlein described the deep ocean as a wondrous realm that he hoped many would still have the chance to explore.

He expressed his desire for others to carry forward the vision he and Rush initiated in 2009, although it seems OceanGate may not play a role in that future.

Earlier testimonies in the hearings depicted the company’s operations in less noble terms, with several former employees claiming that Rush prioritized speed and cost over safety, often disregarding engineers’ safety concerns.

On Thursday, David Lochridge, the former operations director of OceanGate, testified that few of the company’s activities were directed towards scientific understanding of the ocean.

“The primary motive behind the company was profit,” he claimed during the hearings.

Lochridge stated that he was forced out of the company after repeatedly raising concerns regarding the submersible’s safety.

What Transpired with the Titan?

The Titan’s expedition, which was scheduled to last eight hours, commenced at 8 a.m. on June 18, 2023, roughly 435 miles off Newfoundland’s coast. After an hour and 45 minutes, communication was lost between the Titan and its support vessel. By 3 p.m., the submersible had not surfaced, prompting a global search and rescue operation that captivated attention for four days.

Onboard were Rush, as pilot; Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 73, a French deep-sea explorer; Hamish Harding, 58, a British pilot and adventurer; and Shahzada Dawood, 48, a Pakistani-British businessman along with his 19-year-old son, Suleman Dawood.

It wasn’t until 11:48 a.m. on June 22 that the U.S. Coast Guard reported finding a debris field indicating that the vessel likely experienced a “catastrophic implosion,” confirming the loss of all Titan occupants.