Simpsons writer stunned at how 'basic and simple' OceanGate sub was

A writer for The Simpsons revealed his safety concerns about the missing OceanGate submarine after previously embarking on several trips himself.

The craft containing five people went missing on Sunday (18 June) after passengers set off to discover the Titanic wreckage.

Aboard the missing sub that costs £250,000 per person, are British billionaire explorer Hamish Harding, renowned French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and OceanGate founder Stockton Rush, along with Surrey-based businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Sulaiman Dawood.

Famed writer Mike Reiss, who has worked on The Simpsons for many years, has since opened up about his personal experience with the company.

Speaking to The Sun, he said: "I have taken three different dives with this company, one at the Titanic and two others and you almost always lost communication — and you are at the mercy of weather."

He also noted his shock at how "basic and simple the whole operation is," after some likened the remote control to an "Xbox controller."

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Banker Renata Rojas, who embarked on the trip last year, also lifted the lid on the communication issues while at the bottom of the ocean.

She told the publication that "you have to find a way to communicate and navigate in the bottom of the ocean. Sometimes you don’t have communications, you have maybe just one system instead of all three."

Rojas added: "Some of the lights may flicker … The battery might be low and you need to go to the surface."

The worrying incident has understandably struck up concerns about the submarine's whereabouts.

It has also, once again, demonstrated how awful social media can be, with some poking fun at the expedition.

"The tweets joking about the missing #OceanGate sub make me physically ill," one person hit back. "These are real people you are mocking. Their wealth is immaterial. Have some effing compassion."

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