Wife of the pilot of the missing submersible that was on its way to the Titanic wreckage, is a descendant of one of the wealthiest couples onboard the Titanic, who died when the ocean liner sank in 1912.
Wendy Rush belongs to the family of retailing magnate Isidor Straus and wife Ida Straus, who died during the sinking of the Titanic.
According to a report in the New York Times, Wendy Rush is the great-great-granddaughter of Straus, who was the co-owner of Macy’s department store. The first-class passengers were two of the wealthiest people onboard the Titanic.
Wendy Rush married Stockton Rush, who is one of the five missing people onboard the submersible, in 1986. Wendy Rush herself has gone in three expeditions to the Titanic wreckage in the past two years. She is also the communications director at OceanGate that operates the submersibles, and is a longtime board member of its charitable foundation.
As per the report, Ida Straus refused to leave her husband and save herself when women and children were fleeing the liner. She refused her seat on a lifeboat. They were seen standing arm to arm on the Titanic’s deck as it went down, as per survivor testimonials, the report added.
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James Cameron, who directed the 1997 blockbuster hit, Titanic, had included a fictionalised version of the Straus’ story. Fans of the movie would be able to recall the shot of an elderly couple embracing each other in bed as the water levels rise inside the vessel. Isidor’s body was later found at sea two weeks later but Ida’s body was never found.
Wendy Straus is a descendent of one of Isidor and Ida’s daughters, Minnie. Her son, Richard Weil Jr later became the president of Macy’s New York.
Meanwhile, search for the submersible, Titan, that also had Wendy Rush’s husband, is underway. However, the sub that left with 96 hours of oxygen is anticipated to be left with a few hours' worth of oxygen.
The lack of oxygen is presumed to be only a hypothetical deadline, considering the vessel might not even be intact. A diving robot was also descended well below the ruins of the Titanic to look for the vessel.
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