OceanGate, the company behind the missing Titanic sub, has said they believe the crew have "sadly been lost".
“We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost,” the company said in a statement.
This comes as the US Coast Guard confirmed the debris found belonged to the missing sub.
“These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans,” according to the statement. “Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew.”
This comes after a “debris field” was discovered within the search area in the missing vessel. According to a USCG spokesperson it was 1,600 feet from the Titanic.
The full statement added: "This is an extremely sad time for our dedicated employees who are exhausted and grieving deeply over this loss.
"The entire OceanGate family is deeply grateful for the countless men and women from multiple organisations of the international community who expedited wide-ranging resources and have worked so very hard on this mission.
"We appreciate their commitment to finding these five explorers, and their days and nights of tireless work in support of our crew and their families.
"This is a very sad time for the entire explorer community, and for each of the family members of those lost at sea.
"We respectfully ask that the privacy of these families be respected during this most painful time."
The debris was found by a remotely-operated vehicle on the seafloor near the Titanic and the findings are being 'evaluated' by experts.
The Coast Guard says the Titan submersible likely imploded in the North Atlantic waters and there were no survivors among the five people aboard.
The implosion likely occurred near the Titanic shipwreck, where the submersible was headed.
"The debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber," Rear Admiral John Mauger, of the First Coast Guard District, said Thursday. "Our most heartfelt condolences go out to the loved ones of the crew."
The discovery comes hours after the estimated oxygen supplies would have run out.
It is unclear whether officials believe the debris is connected to the Titan vessel, but a friend of Hamish Harding, who is one of the missing passengers, has been told it is.
A spokesperson for the USCG wrote: "A debris field was discovered within the search area by an ROV near the Titanic. Experts within the unified command are evaluating the information."
A conference has been arranged for 3pm EST (8pm UK time) to “discuss the findings”.
Rear Admiral John Mauger, First Coast Guard District commander, and Captain Jamie Frederick, First Coast Guard District response coordinator, will lead the press conference.
The Coast Guard had said earlier on Thursday that it is still treating the mission as an “active search and rescue”, despite hopes fading as the expected 96-hour oxygen supply onboard dwindled.
But the debris find raises the question of whether the vessel has been intact and in a state in which it could be rescued since the search started.
The USCG said the ROV that made the discovery was from the Canadian Horizon Arctic ship – with the debris being found on the seafloor near the Titanic wreckage.
