TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A submersible taking wealthy tourists to visit the site of the Titanic wreckage in deep waters off the coast of Canada was missing for a third day on Tuesday, June 20, as U.S. and Canadian ships and planes swept a huge area trying to find the vessel.

One pilot and four passengers were on board the submersible that went missing on Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard said, adding the vessel could stay underwater for up to 96 hours, although it was unclear if it had resurfaced but was unable to communicate.

U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger in television interviews on Tuesday said rescuers continued their efforts overnight and were expanding their search into deeper waters, telling NBC News that authorities were prioritizing the area where the vessel was operating.

"As we continue on with this search ... we've been working through the night with a broad group of partners to bring all capabilities to bear looking on both the surface and now expanding to a subsurface in the area," he told CNN.

Those aboard the submersible, the highlight of a tourist expedition that costs $250,000 per person, included British billionaire Hamish Harding and Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood with his son Suleman.

The 77-year-old French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet and Stockton Rush, founder and CEO of the vessel's U.S.-based operating company OceanGate, were also reported to be on board.

"We are very grateful for the concern being shown by our colleagues and friends and would like to request everyone to pray for their safety," Dawood's family said on Tuesday.

U.S. and Canadian ships and planes began swarming the area on Monday about 900 miles (1,450 km) east of Cape Cod, some dropping sonar buoys that can monitor to a depth of 13,000 feet (3,962 meters), Mauger said on Monday.

"We are deploying all available assets to make sure that we can locate the craft and rescue the people on board," he said. "It is a remote area and it is a challenge to conduct a search in that remote area."

He said officials had asked commercial vessels to help.

The wreckage of the Titanic that sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg lies at about 12,500 feet (3,810 meters). The Titan submersible usually takes two hours to descend to the wreck.

OceanGate Expeditions, the private company that operates the submersible, said it was "mobilizing all options" to rescue those aboard the Titan.

Mauger said OceanGate Expeditions is leading the search efforts with Coast Guard assets brought into the site.

"They know that site better than anybody else," Mauger said on NBC. "We're working very closely with them to prioritize our underwater search efforts and get equipment there."

Asked if he was optimistic that the tourists could be found alive, Mauger said crews were focused on finding the people onboard and the capabilities needed to continue the search.

He also declined to confirm the identity of anyone on board, citing privacy issues.

The U.S. Coast Guard said on Twitter that a boat on the surface - the Polar Prince - lost contact with the submersible about one hour and 45 minutes after it began diving to the site of the Titanic wreckage on Sunday.

REUTERS

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