09:58,

YEREVAN, JUNE 23, ARMENPRESS. The US Coast Guard says that a debris field located in the North Atlantic suggests that a submersible missing since Sunday, with five passengers on board, suffered a "catastrophic implosion,” the BBC reports.

The vessel, which had limited oxygen supplies, went missing deep under the ocean on Sunday after setting off to explore the wreck of the Titanic.

It prompted a massive five-day search and rescue operation led by US, Canadian and French agencies.

On Thursday evening, the Coast Guard said it had located five major pieces of the Titan amid debris around the Titanic site, which it said was "consistent with catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber".

The agency offered its condolences to the families of the victims and said it could not confirm if their bodies would ever be recovered.

Ahead of its press conference, OceanGate – the company that operates the tours – released a statement saying it believed all five passengers on board "have sadly been lost".

"Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time," the company said. "We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew."

The five people on board were:

Hamish Harding, a 58-year-old British businessman and explorer

Shahzada Dawood, 48-also a British businessman -and his son, Suleman Dawood, 19

Paul-Henry Nargeolet, a 77-year-old French explorer nicknamed "Mr Titanic"

Stockton Rush, 61, is the chief executive of OceanGate, the firm behind the dive

The find completes a five-day search across nations which spanned more than 20,000 sq km of ocean.