‘It’s a graveyard and should be left in peace’: Relatives of Titanic passengers slam tour firms ‘exploiting’ wreckage
23 June 2023, 16:08 | Updated: 23 June 2023, 16:19
Relatives of passengers and crew who died on the Titanic in 1912 have called on ‘adventurers’ to leave the ship’s wreckage 'in peace' out of respect to those who died.
It comes after it was announced on Thursday that the passengers on board the submersible that conducts tours of the Titanic wreckage had imploded, leaving all five passengers on board dead.
After the recent death of those on board the expedition vessel, the relatives of those who first died on the Titanic over 100 years ago have reprimanded companies for offering tours of the wreckage.
Writing in a Facebook group designated for relatives of the 1912 victims, Anna Roberts, the great-granddaughter of Percy Thomas Ward who was a bedroom steward and died on the ship, hit out at the companies for making the wreckage into a "tourist attraction".
She said: “I deplore the fact Titanic has become a tourist attraction. It is a graveyard and should be left in peace and respect.”
Another wrote on the page: “Leave those poor souls to have eternal rest.”
Brett Gladstone, whose great-great grandmother was also killed on the Titanic, said speaking to Inside Edition: “I’ve always been uncomfortable with the exploitation of the ship down there.
“Over a thousand people died. My great great-grandmother's body was never found, it lies at the bottom.
“Her soul and the souls of a thousand people remains in a kind of graveyard.”
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John Locascio, whose two uncles died on the Titanic, said speaking to CNN: “'I compare it to looking inside a grave. I mean, people died there tragically, very tragically.
“Why make it a place for people to go see?
“Why, why do you have to do that? Let the people rest.”
Meanwhile Helen Richardson, 40, whose great-great grandfather Christopher Arthur Shulver was a fireman on the Titanic and survived, told MailOnline: “It should be left alone. It is a site where all those poor people lost their lives, and a tragic site even for those who survived.”
It was confirmed by Rear Admiral John Mauger of the US Coast Guard on Thursday that the five passengers on board the missing Titanic sub, which was touring the wreckage of the 1912 ship, had died.
He said their deaths were likely the result of a “catastrophic implosion” on the same day the vessel departed.
The group consisted of Mr Harding, British nationals Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman - Stockton Rush, CEO of OceanGate Expeditions and 73-year-old French explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet.
Tributes poured in for the passengers on board the sub after the announcement.
In a statement released by Mr Harding's company Action Aviation, the family said they were "united in grief with the other families who have also lost their loved ones".
The Dawood family also released a statement saying: “It is with profound grief that we announce the passing of Shahzada and Suleman Dawood.
"Please continue to keep the departed souls and our family in your prayers during this difficult period of mourning.”
Guillermo Sohnlein, a co-founder of OceanGate has since defended the integrity of the submersible the passengers boarded.
Mr Sohnlein left the business a decade ago but insisted the sub was tested rigorously.
Speaking to Times Radio, he said: “He [Stockton Rush] was extremely committed to safety. He was also extremely diligent about managing risks, and was very keenly aware of the dangers of operating in a deep ocean environment.
“So that's one of the main reasons I agreed to go into business with him in 2009.
“I know from first-hand experience that we were extremely committed to safety and safety and risk mitigation was a key part of the company culture.”
