Internal messages came to light alarming about serious security vulnerabilities in the submarine Titanic

Stockton Rush, the founder of OceanGate and one of the five killed in the Titan submarine implosion, was aware that something bad could happen to the transport. The top man was previously warned that the submarine was not completely safe, but he did not follow the recommendations. That’s according to emails Rush exchanged with Rob McCallum, a leading specialist in deep-sea exploration.

The emails are said to date from March 2018, five years before the tragedy. In it, the specialist warned him that he would put himself and his clients in a dangerous situation. To which Rush replied that there was already a possibility that he was going to kill someone and he considered it a “grave personal insult”.

“We’ve heard the unfounded messages of ‘you’re going to kill someone’ way too many times… I consider this a serious personal affront,” Rush wrote to McCallum after being warned of the submarine’s consequences. He also emphasized that the industry wanted to prevent people from becoming interested in this new and small market. “I am well qualified to understand the risks and issues associated with underwater exploration in a new vehicle,” wrote the CEO who died in the submarine.

McCallum went on to state the danger to which he was exposing himself. “Until a submarine is classified, tested and proven, it should not be used for commercial deep-diving operations. There is much more at stake than the Titan and the Titanic,” he said.

“I implore you to be very careful in your trials and tests at sea and be very, very conservative,” the deep-sea specialist added. “As much as I appreciate entrepreneurship and innovation, you are potentially endangering an entire industry,” he pleaded with Rush. As determined by the specialist, the ship was not certified or classified for commercial activity.

“I am well qualified to understand the risks and issues associated with underwater exploration in a new vehicle,” wrote the late CEO in the implosion. McCallum ended with: “It will be the sea trials that determine whether the vehicle can serve what you want it to do, unlessyes again, take care and stay safe.”

The submarine departed on June 18 Unpleasant A few hours into the trip, communication with the boat was lost. The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed on June 22 that all five men on board died after what was likely a “catastrophic implosion” of Titan.

The other 4 people who died are: British businessman Hamish Harding; the French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet; and Pakistani-born businessman Shahzada Dawood and her son Suleman, who were British citizens.