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A plaque is set to be laid on the seabed next to the Titanic in honour of one of the victims of last year’s Titan submersible disaster.
French expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, made 37 successful dives to the world’s most famous shipwreck and was on board the first-ever manned mission.
Known as “Mr Titanic”, he is credited with the recovery of numerous artefacts that have helped keep the tragic story of the ill-fated liner alive.
He was one of five men who lost their lives when the “experimental” and uncertified Oceangate Titan submersible lost contact with the surface an hour and 45 minutes into its dive to the Titanic.
What followed was an intense, international search and rescue mission to attempt to locate the uncertified “tourist sub” before its limited oxygen supply ran out.
Also aboard was the co-CEO of the company behind the operation Stockton Rush, 61; British billionaire explorer Hamish Harding, 58; Pakistani billionaire businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48; and his 19-year-old student son, Solomon Dawood.
The men will be honoured as part of a memorial service on the first mission to the wreck since the disaster, which will set off from Providence, Rhode Island, on Friday.
As reported by the BBC, the service will also be held in honour of the 1,500 people who lost their lives in the original sinking.
This year’s mission is being carried out by the company RMS Titanic Inc, which owns exclusive salvage rights to the liner which sank in 1912.
In a Reddit Ask Me Anything, the company confirmed it is not using manned submersibles on this mission, but will spend 20 days on a ship above the wreck.
“We aren’t using manned submersibles this time around, so thankfully we don’t have to worry about that, just the cabin fever of being stuck on the ship,” it wrote.
RMS Titanic Inc explained the purpose of this mission is to obtain the most detailed photographic evidence of the wreck site on record.
“We want to see the wreck with a clarity and precision that’s never before been achieved,” co-expedition lead David Gallo told the BBC.
The firm plans to identify objects of historical significance for potential recovery as the Titanic continues to deteriorate.
There is a particular interest in the Marconi wireless system that was used to send the SOS signal after the ship hit an iceberg that fateful night in April 1912.
RMS Titanic Inc has recovered 5,500 objects from the wreck, which lies 3,800m (12,500ft) below the North Atlantic Ocean, many of which were recovered in consultation with Nargeolet, who was the director of underwater research for the Atlanta-based company.
James Cameron has repeatedly expressed his shock that his friend was even aboard the doomed Titan submersible but acknowledged that Nargolet was not an engineer.
“PH was an explorer at heart,” he told 60 Minutes Australia.
The Titanic director, who has also visited the wreck more than 30 times, admitted he wished he had spoken up more about concerns within the submersible community about OceanGate’s actions.
While he had concerns about the sub’s carbon-fibre hull, it was not until the disaster that he realised it was uncertified.
“I may even go back to the Titanic in that sub just to prove the point that if it’s done right, it can be done safely,” Mr Cameron said.
“These guys broke the rules,” Mr Cameron added of OceanGate, which charged $250,000 a trip to the wreck. “It’s that simple. They should not have been legally allowed to carry passengers.”
It is believed that the submersible’s controversial use of a carbon-fibre hull, which was deemed not suitable for use at depth, slowly weakened over time and resulted in last year’s catastrophic implosion.
Mr Nargeolet previously acknowledged that if something goes wrong in a submersible, death will occur “before you realise something is happening”.
“If you are 11 metres or 11 kilometres down, if something bad happens, the result is the same. When you’re in very deep water, you’re dead before you realise that something is happening, so it’s just not a problem,” he said in 2019.
The LARS A-frame holds an #ROV on the DINO CHOUEST. The ROV will be used during #TITANICExpedition2024 to gather images and map data during RMS Titanic, Inc.'s ninth expedition to the #TITANIC wrecksite. #CInnovation #RMST #Oceanography pic.twitter.com/rGvPmia4mw
— RMS Titanic, Inc. (@RMSTitanic_Inc) July 11, 2024
The investigation into last year’s disaster remains ongoing, with the US Coast Guard admitting it has taken longer than anticipated.
Mr Nargeolet’s daughter, Sidonie Nargeolet, said that despite the tragedy, she believes that expeditions to the wreck should continue.
“I think it’s good that people go on the sub and it’s good to take artifacts from the Titanic, but just not to play with security, the lives of people,” she told Pen News.
“My dad could spend all day long talking about the Titanic,” she added to 60 Minutes Australia. “He really loved it. Mr Titanic.”
Following last year’s disaster, OceanGate suspended all commercial operations.
A spokesperson for the Coast Guard told The Independent: “The Titan Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) remains in the fact-finding phase of the investigation and is collecting all relevant evidence and information.
“A projected completion date is not available.
“The latter part of the fact-finding phase will include a public hearing, and the MBI will provide at least 60 days’ notice ahead of the public hearing.”
The Independent has reached out to RMS Titanic Inc for more information.
