Presumed human remains recovered from Titan sub wreckage

(NewsNation) — Presumed human remains have been recovered within the Titan submersible wreckage, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.

“United States medical professionals will conduct a formal analysis of presumed human remains that have been carefully recovered within the wreckage at the site of the incident,” the Coast Guard shared in a news release.

The announcement comes after debris from the Titanic-bound submersible was returned to land. Pieces of the 22-foot sub were brought ashore Wednesday at a Canadian Coast Guard pier. Experts believe the debris could serve as a key piece of figuring out why the sub imploded.

“The evidence will provide investigators from several international jurisdictions with critical insights into the cause of this tragedy. There is still a substantial amount of work to be done to understand the factors that led to the catastrophic loss of the Titan and help ensure a similar tragedy does not occur again,” Marine Board of Investigation Chair Captain Jason Neubauer said.

All five people aboard the sub died. Killed in the implosion last week were OceanGate CEO and pilot Stockton Rush; two members of a prominent Pakistani family, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood; British adventurer Hamish Harding; and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet.

OceanGate Expeditions reportedly charged passengers $250,000 each for the voyage to view the remains of the Titanic.

The Titanic wreckage is about 12,000 feet at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. The ship sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.