'No stranger to nautical tragedies' - Missing Titanic submersible strikes chord with Canadian province
In 1982, the province of Newfoundland and Labrador suffered another disaster when an oil rig capsized killing all 84 on board.
Wednesday 21 June 2023 03:55, UK
The muscular outcrop of rock and trees in the North Atlantic that is better known as Newfoundland, attracts a hardy, no-nonsense sort of person.
And hardy, no-nonsense people require a knowledge of - and respect for the sea.
"The reason we all live on this beautiful rock in the middle of the North Atlantic is because of the ocean," says Andrew Furey, who happens to be the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.
"But our relationship with the ocean is quite complicated," he said.
People on the island know all about tragedies at sea.
Just outside Premier Furey's office lies a memorial to the Ocean Ranger disaster.
The Ocean Ranger was an oil rig which capsized and sank in a fierce storm in 1982. There were 84 men on board at the time, including 56 Newfoundlanders, and no one managed to survive.
The disappearance of the submersible Titan, which has taken tourists and researchers to the wreckage of the RMS Titanic over the past two years, has also made an impact.
'We're no stranger to nautical disasters'
Premier Furey said he understood what the family members of the five missing men are going through.
"It is tragic, emotional… we're no stranger to nautical disasters or nautical tragedies.
"In some ways, it makes us stronger, but it doesn't diminish the emotion and the anxiety of a day like today."
The premier has pledged to support the rescue effort with "whatever hard and soft assets we can offer", and it now looks like one "hard asset", the port in St John's, will act as the main staging post in the international rescue effort.
"There are a lot of marine vessels available here as well as remote operated vehicles. It is something that we train people for in this province.
"We have the expertise and the emergency services and this is something that the US ambassador and [the UK] high commissioner fully understand."
The company which owns the submersible, OceanGate, has signed a series of agreements with groups and businesses in Newfoundland.
One important deal involves the marine institute at the island's Memorial University where Titan has been stored and maintained. OceanGate has also provided internships to a number of students.
However, the company is running a form of exclusive adventure tourism in an area where rescue operations are both extremely difficult - and extremely costly.
Read more:
Missing craft has about 40 hours of 'breathable air left'
Titanic submersible: Missing craft may have imploded and collapsed into pieces
Time to rethink Newfoundland's Titanic tourism?
I asked the premier whether it was time to think again about companies like OceanGate.
"Have you had second thoughts about the sort of tourism that it offers people?"
"I mean, it's premature to think about that right now," he said.
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"My primary thoughts are with the rescue mission for families, with the souls on board, with the first responders, with hard working women and men who are out there in the high seas, trying to locate a needle in a moving haystack.
"Right now, our primary focus is with the people trying to do the best they can to save these people."