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These could be the last photos of the Titan submersible before its final descent

Kenny Sharpe may have taken the last photos of the Titan submersible before this week's tragic, final descent.

CBC reporter took photos of the submersible in St. John's Harbour in May

A photo of a white submersible being towed in the water.
Kenny Sharpe captured images of the Titan submersible in St. John's Harbour back in May. (Kenneth Sharpe/CBC)

When Kenny Sharpe first noticed an unusual white, cylindrical vessel in St. John's Harbour last month, he had no idea that he may have taken the last photos of the Titan submersible.

"I was just walking Signal Hill that day like I normally do," said the CBC Newfoundland reporter.

A white submersible is captured being towed by a large blue ship in the St. John's harbour.
The Titan submersible being towed by the Polar Prince in St. John's Harbour in May. (Kenneth Sharpe/CBC)

Sharpe regularly takes photos of the vessels entering and exiting the harbour. Usually, they include sailboats, yachts or search-and-rescue boats. But this one was different. 

"This thing was obviously unique," he said, so he snapped a few photos. 

Sharpe captured images of the Titan as it was being towed by a ship called the Polar Prince, "between the Narrows and out to sea," he said.

Sharpe didn't think about those photos again until this week.

That's when, like the rest of the world, he learned the vessel had gone missing, shortly after making its 3,800-metre descent to the wreck of the Titanic and some two hours into what should've been an eight-hour trip. 

A large blue ship is seen pulling a large, white submersible, floating on the water, in a wide shot of the St. John's harbour.
The Titan submersible captured in St. John's Harbour in what may be one of the last photos of the vessel before this week's tragic, final descent. (Kenneth Sharpe/CBC)

"Obviously, the last couple of days I realized what it was and looked back at my photos. And well, that's all there really is to say," he said.

A wide shot of a large, blue ship towing a white submersible toward the open sea.
The Titan submersible is seen heading toward sea, towed by the Polar Prince. (Kenneth Sharpe/CBC)

Sharpe may have snapped some of the last photos of the Titan before its final voyage.

The company OceanGate, which operates the Titan, said Thursday afternoon that it believes all five people on board have died.

After four days of searching, the United States Coast Guard said it found debris from the Titan near the wreck of the Titanic.