Time is counting down for the five passengers of the Titan submarine, missing for the second 24 hours while heading towards the wreck of the legendary Titanic, as the authorities have only 40 hours to locate him, that is, as long as the oxygen in the submarine lasts.

According to a press conference of US Coast Guard officials a “complex research” as they characterized it is in progress by American and Canadian media which requires however specialized equipment and know-how which they do not possess themselves. For this reason, they are asking for the assistance of other countries in order to help in the investigations.

“The unified administration is trying to bring together that expertise and additional capacity to maximize the effort to solve this very complex problem.”Capt. Jamie Frederick said during the press conference.

Oxygen only for 40 hours

Coast Guard officials estimate there is oxygen left for “about 40 hours” and it is pointed out that the rescue crews are “working around the clock” to ensure that everything is possible to locate the “Titan” and its members.

“We know from the data we were using as a starting point it was 96 hours. We know that at this point we are about 40, 41 hours,” said the captain.

“No results so far”

Officials of the US Coast Guard admit that despite their continuous efforts so far there is “no result in the investigations”.

“We offer our heartfelt thoughts and prayers for the five crew members, their families and loved ones,” Coast Guard Capt.

According to the update, the operation to locate him is carried out so far in 7,600 square miles and involves aircraft and vessels of the Coast Guard and the US Navy, as well as the Canadian military. At the same time, the 106th Rescue Wing of the New York National Guard is assisting in the search and rescue operation, as Governor Kathy Hotchul announced in her statement on Tuesday.

In the next few hours help is expected from other countries. As Captain Frederick said several ships are already on their way to join the effort.

All five crew members have been identified. They are Stockton Rush, president and founder of Oceangate Stockton Rush, billionaire Hamish Harding, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman and operator Paul Narzole.

Friends and relatives are praying for the crew to be found as soon as possible but experts say they have only a 1% chance of survival. Lt. Gen. David Mauget, a former US Navy nuclear submarine commander, told DailyMail.com this morning: “If I was advising the prime minister, I would say their chances are 1%.”

French aid ordered by Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron ordered the dispatch of the research vessel Atlante to join the international search for the missing submarine.

“Our idea and desire is for the ship to arrive as soon as possible, which should be Wednesday at 20:00 local time”French Foreign Minister responsible for the sea, Hervé Berville, told CNN affiliate BFMTV.

The ship is equipped with an underwater robot that can reach depths of up to 4,000 meters, and the robot’s operating team has departed from the French city of Toulon, according to Berville.

“This is a race against time that started last night (Monday) and France responded to the calls of the US authorities,” he said.

Did the owner company react eight hours late?

At the same time, according to American and British media, the company that owns the submarine, OceanGate Expeditions reacted eight hours late until it informed that it lost its mark to the US Coast Guard on Sunday. Until now, however, it has not been verified whether the company was indeed late in notifying the authorities.

According to ocean researcher Robert Blasiak, if the submarine has fallen to the bottom of the ocean the conditions will be difficult as the atmospheric pressure will be about 380 times more than on the surface.

Also, even if the submarine has drifted away but is floating on the surface of the sea, unfortunately no one can get out, and there is no backup means of rescue.