The United States Coast Guard is denying reports that “banging” noises were heard near the site where a missing submersible carrying five passengers went missing in the Atlantic Ocean.
In an internal email obtained by Rolling Stone on Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security leadership said crews heard banging sounds while searching the area where OceanGate Expedition submersible the Titan disappeared on Sunday.
The Coast Guard later confirmed in a statement that a Canadian P-3 aircraft “detected underwater noises in the search area.”
However, U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class (PO3) Briana Carter tells PEOPLE that those sounds have been “characterized as underwater noise.”
“We don’t have anything at this time indicating any implosion or banging,” Carter says.
The U.S. Coast Guard says it is “working closely with U.S. Navy experts for further analysis” of the noises.
In the meantime, operations involving remotely-operated vehicles (ROV) “have been reallocated to explore the origin of the noise,” the Coast Guard says. So far, ROV searches “have not yielded results.”
Carter says the U.S. Coast Guard does not have sonar capabilities, and “are relying on capabilities of partner agencies, such as the Canadian Coast Guard and the commercial vessels in that area, such as the Skandi Vinland.”
“We are not experts on sonar,” Carter tells PEOPLE.
Norwegian vessel company DOF Group, which owns the Skandi Vinland, has confirmed that the multi-purpose vessel “has joined the search and rescue operation” for the missing submersible.
The ship, which has two built-in ROVs, arrived at the search site around 7 p.m. on Tuesday. Both of the ship’s ROVs have been deployed, allowing an operations team “to provide 24-hour assistance” during the search.
The Canadian Coast Guard did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The Titan was attempting to reach the Titanic wreckage on Sunday when it lost contact with Canadian expedition vessel Polar Prince, according to officials.
The vessel is equipped with just 96 hours of oxygen, United States Coast Guard Captain Jamie Frederick confirmed at a press conference on Tuesday.
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