Tourist submarine on dive to Titanic wreck goes missing with five people onboard

A five-person tourist submarine went missing during a dive to Titanic’s wreck on Sunday. The submarine named Titan operated by OceanGate Expeditions offers tourists an up-close look at the wreckage of the Titanic.  

According to officials, The submersible began its descent on Sunday morning but lost contact after about an hour and 45 minutes into its descent.

Meanwhile, U.S. and Canadian ships and planes started searching for the submarine on Monday. Government agencies, the US and Canadian navies and commercial deep-sea firms are helping in the rescue operation.

The U.S. Coast Guard said that there was one pilot and four passengers on board.

A submarine and sonar buoys were involved in the search for the vessel. However, it is unclear whether it is still underwater or had surfaced and was unable to communicate.

Titanic’s wreck lies some 700km south of St John’s, Newfoundland. Though, the rescue mission is being run from Boston, Massachusetts.