Human remains found in Titan sub wreckage

Human remains have been discovered within the wreckage of the Titan submersible, more than a week after the tragic implosion that claimed the lives of all five people onboard.

The US Coast Guard said a comprehensive analysis will be conducted on the remains, following their discovery within debris from the craft that was transferred to St. John's harbor Newfoundland, Canada, on Wednesday, by the Horizon Arctic ship, reported The Associated Press.

Fatalities onboard the ill-fated vessel that set out to explore the wreck of the Titanic included British adventurer Hamish Harding and father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, OceanGate Expeditions' chief executive Stockton Rush, a US national, and French citizen Paul-Henri Nargeolet.

Jason Neubauer, a captain with the Marine Board of Investigation, who is leading the investigation into the tragedy, said: "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."

Video footage broadcast on Wednesday depicted a fragmented portion of the Titan's hull and some machinery parts being removed from the Horizon Arctic at St. John's, reported Reuters news agency.

A desperate search and rescue mission was initiated on June 18 when the Titan lost contact with its parent ship, Polar Prince, an hour and 45 minutes into its two-hour dive toward the Titanic wreckage. The vessel was declared missing eight hours after the loss of communication.

The Horizon Arctic, a Canadian vessel, had transported a Remotely Operated Vehicle, known as an ROV, to comb the ocean floor near the Titanic wreckage, joining the international search for the Titan submersible.

The US owner of the ROV, Pelagic Research Services, declared on Wednesday that its off shore operations had been completed. In a statement, it mentioned that its team is "still on mission" and unable to provide comment on the ongoing investigation of the Titan incident, which it noted was a collaborative effort involving multiple government agencies from both the US and Canada.

"They have been working around the clock now for 10 days, through the physical and mental challenges of this operation, and are anxious to finish the mission and return to their loved ones," said the company's statement.