James Cameron may be the man behind everything from Piranha II to The Abyss and Avatar, but he is not just a movie director. He is a hardcore oceanographic explorer. He has made 33 dives to the wreck of the Titanic, placing him at something like #2 in the all-time list of people to visit there. He was also the first person to successfully solo dive to the deepest part of the Mariana Trench, the deepest point on Earth.
His known love of technology has driven many filmmaking techniques forward, but it doesn’t stop there. He is also a submersible designer and his technical skills mean he is considered one of the world’s leading experts in the field of deep-sea submersible diving. His deep-sea wildlife documentaries are unrivaled. So when he speaks on the subject, you should probably listen.
When speaking about the recent Titan submarine disaster, which is now confirmed as having imploded while trying to reach the wreck site, he said:
“I’m struck by the similarity of the Titanic disaster itself. Where the captain was repeatedly warned about ice ahead of his ship, and yet he steamed at full speed into an ice field.”
Now, in an interview with Times Radio yesterday, OceanGate co-founder Guillermo Söhnlein addressed the criticism and said it’s ‘impossible’ for anyone on the outside to speculate on what happened to the ship – that includes Cameron:
“It’s impossible for anyone to really speculate from the outside… I know from firsthand experience that we were extremely committed to safety, and risk mitigation was a key part of the company culture.”
The U.S. Coast Guard is now said to have detected what they thought was the implosion as far back as Monday, and have revealed debris consistent with the submersible was found near the wreck of the Titanic. OceanGate’s CEO Stockton Rush was piloting the craft.
Considering Cameron’s track record, and the reports we are hearing now that many other sub-operators warned OceanGate on several aspects of operations, including the use of carbon fiber in the sub, maybe they should start listening? We are pretty sure the lawyers they will shortly be hearing from will insist upon it.
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