Titan sub hearings live: Testimony concludes as Coast Guard hears about build up to OceanGate disaster
US Coast Guard’s two-week long hearing into the disastrous Titan submersible voyage operated by OceanGate has concluded in North Charleston
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Your support makes all the difference.OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush allegedly declared that he would “buy a congressman” to make issues surrounding the Titan sub’s certification go away, a witness testified.
Matthew McCoy, who worked at the submersible company for six months from April 2017, addressed the Titan Marine Board of Investigation panel on Friday for the final day of the two-week long hearing into Titan’s disaster voyage in June 2023.
After raising concerns about an alleged lack of certificate of inspection for the first Titan sub in 2017, McCoy testified that Rush told him, “I would buy a congressman” to make problems disappear during a lunch meeting. The ex-OceanGate employee said that he quit soon after.
“He was either trying to intimidate me or impress me,” he testified.
McCoy also alleged that the OceanGate engineering department was “full of college interns” during his time at the company, adding that he “doesn’t believe” there was a professional engineer on staff.
Captain Jamie Frederick, member of the US Coast Guard who oversaw rescue mission of the Titan and its five crew, began testifying after McCoy. Coast Guard Search and Rescue Specialist Scott Talbot was the last person to testify.
First witness, ex-OceanGate employee Matthew McCoy, finishes testimony
Matthew McCoy, a former OceanGate employee who worked at the company between April and September in 2017, has finished with his testimony.
OceanGate engineering department full of ‘college interns,’ former employee testifies
Ex-OceanGate employee Matthew McCoy testified that the submersible’s “engineering department didn’t seem overly qualified,” while he worked at the company in 2017.
He again said he was concerned after learning that OceanGate had broken ties with Boeing and the University of Washington’s engineering department.
“Who is the qualified individual making these decisions?,” he added. McCoy claimed that OceanGate engineers consisted of “college interns” during the summer of 2017.
Ex-OceanGate employee ‘didn’t think they’d dive Titan’
Matthew McCoy testified that after handing in notice following his lunch with OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush (as per previous post), he “didn’t think they’d dive Titan”.
OceanGate CEO said he would ‘buy a congressman’ to make problems go away, witness testifies
Matthew McCoy said he had lunch with OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush and OceanGate’s director of quality assurance Scott Griffith and raised concerns about an alleged lack of certificate of inspection for the first Titan sub in 2017.
“I would buy a congressman” and make the problems go away, McCoy said that Rush told him.
“He was either trying to intimidate me or impress me,” he testified.
McCoy said that he handed in his notice the following day.
Ex-OceanGate employee reveals ‘first alarm bell’
“During my time there [at OceanGate], I learned that the company had basically broken ties with the applied physics lab at the University of Washington,” and the “explanation wasn’t clear” as to why, OceanGate employee Matthew McCoy testified.
He referred to this as his “first alarm bell”.
McCoy said that the second alarm bell was that “Boeing wasn’t going to be doing the carbon fiber” for the first Titan sub hull.
Ex-OceanGate employee Matthew McCoy begins giving testimony
Matthew McCoy, a former member of the US Coast Guard before working for OceanGate for six months from April 2017 to September 2017, is the first witness of the day to begin testifying at approximately 9.05am ET.
“I had zero experience with any sort of underwater vehicle at the time,” he testified, before saying he helped support on test dives and training.
Titan hearing begins, despite power outage due to storm Helene
Jason Neubauer of the Office of Investigations and Casualty Analysis Deputy Chief began the hearing’s final daily opening at 9am ET.
The inquiry at Charleston County Council Building, South Carolina, was predicted to be delayed due to Hurricane Helene making landfall in Florida on Thursday evening.
Despite a power outage, Neubauer says, the hearing is now under way.
Schedule: Three witnesses set to testify on hearing’s final day
Three more witnesses, including a final ex-OceanGate employee, are set to testify in front of Titan Marine Board of Investigation on Friday morning.
Matthew McCoy, who worked for the submersible company, will testify at 9am ET. Captain Jamie Frederick of the Coast Guard Sector Boston will address the Coast Guard’s panel at 10.45am, before Rescue Specialist Scott Talbot is due to give testimony at 1.30pm.
Closing remarks will be made at 3.15pm before the final breakdown at 5.15pm.
Titan debris 300m from Titanic site
New maps show just how close the Titan sub was to the Titanic wreck site before disaster hit.
While the Titan’s last known position before the implosion was 1,600ft away from the bow of the Titanic, its debris was found much closer to the bow at 300m away, Coast Guard officials said.
Maps were released on Thursday showing the distance between the two.
US Coast Guard to hold final day of hearings into Titan disaster
The US Coast Guard’s two-week long hearing into the Titan submersible is set to conclude today.
Friday’s hearing will begin with testimony from Commander Zachary Roberston of the Coast Guard Marine Safety Center.
Then, the board will hear from Captain Jamie Frederick with the Coast Guard Sector Boston. Frederick was involved with the Titan search efforts and regularly provided updates to the media last summer.
The final witness will be Scott Talbot, a search and rescue specialist with the Coast Guard.
After the final witness, the board will hear closing statements.
Follow along here for live updates when the hearing begins.
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