Former OceanGate Mission Specialist Renata Rojas was a passenger on numerous dives with OceanGate including one trip down to the Titanic on the Titan in 2022.
Rojas, the fifth witness to testify in the hearing, is a longtime scuba diver with a self-proclaimed obsession with the Titanic. She told the Coast Guard panel she met late OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush in 2015 after learning of his plans to build a submersible to go to the Titanic wreckage site, a trip she eventually made.
MORE ON THE TITAN SUBMERSIBLE
Rojas’ name came up in David Lochridge’s testimony on Tuesday.
Lochridge, the former OceanGate Marine Operations Director turned whistleblower, recalled a 2016 dive to the Andrea Doria wreckage, where Rojas was also on board the Cyclops 1.
In his recounting of events, he said the submersible, piloted by Rush, jammed in the Doria’s port side bow from the CEO’s doing. He told the board a teary-eyed Rojas urged Rush to give Lochridge the controller, at which point, the CEO allegedly threw it at his head.
Rojas version of the story was different.
“I did see David Lochridge’s account of the events and he must’ve gone on a different dive. Nobody was panicking. Nobody was crying. And there was definitely no swearing and yelling,” Rojas told the board.
Lochridge did assume the controls, but it was after he asked and Rush handed the controller over without incident, according to Rojas’ version.
She mentioned she had recorded video throughout the Andrea Doria dive and offered to provide it to the board. However, she admitted she did not get video of when the submersible what stuck in the sand.
Throughout her speaking to the panel, Rojas maintained that every dive she did with OceanGate was thorough and she never felt unsafe. The company would create dive plans and run several tests before each dive, she said.
At the end of the dive, passengers would complete an exit interview where they would take into account concerns or opinions fellow divers had.
Next we heard from Dr. Steven Ross who was OceanGate’s former scientific director.
Dr. Ross went on several dives with OceanGate as well whether it was trailing on the support vessel or going under in the submersibles.
When malfunctions occurred, Dr. Ross said he was made aware and that the entire crew for the dive was notified of the problems.
He recalled asking Rush once how many dives the carbon fiber hull would last before it needed refurbishment. Rush replied that it was “indefinite”.
Dr. Ross was onboard an unsuccessful Titan dive just days before the accident. OceanGate’s 2023 Titanic Expedition using the Titan consisted of five missions beginning on May 11th.
Dr. Ross said he was on Mission 4 which took place June 7-15. As part of that mission, the team attempted to conduct what’s referred to as “Dive 87.” Ross and three other passengers were aboard the Titan piloted by Rush.
He explained the dive was relocated Northeast of the Titanic wreckage because of weather. “Dive 87” on June 12th was ultimately aborted because of a ballast tank issue, according to the testimony.
Information provided by the Coast Guard and Dr. Ross’ testimony both describe what happened next. When the sub resurfaced, the platform malfunctioned causing Titan to become inverted to 45 degrees, bow-up.
Dr. Ross described the scene inside the sub as it was happening.
The hearing will resume on Friday at 8:30 am.
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – Testimony from Thursday’s Coast Guard public hearing into why a submersible imploded on its way to see the shipwrecked Titanic calls into question the validity of previous claims made in the hearing.
MORE ON THE TITAN SUBMERSIBLE
Former OceanGate Mission Specialist Renata Rojas was a passenger on numerous dives with OceanGate including one trip down to the Titanic on the Titan in 2022.
Rojas, the fifth witness to testify in the hearing, is a longtime scuba diver with a self-proclaimed obsession with the Titanic. She told the Coast Guard panel she met late OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush in 2015 after learning of his plans to build a submersible to go to the Titanic wreckage site which she eventually made that trip.
Rojas’ name came up in Former OceanGate Marine Operations Director turned whistleblower David Lochridge’s testimony on Tuesday.
The former OceanGate Marine Operations Director recalled a 2016 dive to the Andrea Doria wreckage, where Rojas was also on board the Cyclops 1.
In his recounting of events, he said the submersible, piloted by Rush, jammed in the Doria’s port side bow from the CEO’s doing. He told the board a teary-eyed Rojas urged Rush to give Lochridge the controller, at which point, the CEO allegedly threw it at his head.
Rojas version of the story was different.
“I did see David Lochridge’s account of the events and he must’ve gone on a different dive. Nobody was panicking. Nobody was crying. And there was definitely no swearing and yelling,” Rojas told the board.
Lochridge did assume the controls, but it was after he asked and Rush handed the controller over without incident, according to Rojas’ version.
She mentioned she had recorded video throughout the Andrea Doria dive and offered to provide it to the board. However, she admitted she did not get video of when the submersible what stuck in the sand.
Throughout her speaking to the panel, Rojas maintained that every dive she did with OceanGate was thorough and she never felt unsafe. The company would create dive plans and run several tests before each dive, she said.
At the end of the dive, passengers would complete an exit interview where they would take into account concerns or opinions fellow divers had.
Next we heard from Dr. Steven Ross who was OceanGate’s former scientific director.
Dr. Ross went on several dives with OceanGate as well whether it was trailing on the support vessel or going under in the submersibles.
When malfunctioning’s occurred, Dr. Ross said he was made aware and that the entire crew for the dive was made aware of the problems.
He recalled asking Rush once how many dives the carbon fiber hull would last before it needed refurbishment. Rush replied that it was “indefinite”.
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