Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary living up to its title in every way conceivable, ABC’s ‘Fatal Dive to the Titanic: Truth and Lies’ can only be described as equal parts bewildering, intriguing, as well as shocking. That’s because it incorporates not just archival footage but also exclusive interviews to really shine a light upon the June 18, 2023, OceanGate Titan submersible implosion that claimed five lives. Amongst them actually could have been the company’s legal advisor and lifelong adventurer David Concannon, but he fatefully had to give up his seat at this Titanic excursion two days prior.
Who is David Concannon?
It was reportedly back when David was merely 14 years old when he stepped into the world of exploration by diving in a lake in New Hampshire, only for it to continue expanding as the years passed. The truth is he was quick to move on from lakes to mud holes in Western Pennsylvania before soon moving on to the ocean and becoming known as a wreck diver in the 1980s. It thus comes as no surprise he has since sailed the Beagle Channel, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, dived deep into the Bermuda Triangle, recovered artifacts from the Titanic, and led expeditions that recovered the Apollo F-1 engines from the ocean.
Though if we’re being honest, what’s most impressive is the fact David achieved all this while ensuring to built himself a professional space in the legal world as a more than competent attorney. In fact, he obtained a Bachelor’s in Finance and Economics from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1988 before going on to earn his Juris Doctorate from Widener University School of Law, all the while attending some international classes at The University of Nairobi School of Law in Kenya and earning a Diploma in International Law/Trade from The Hague Academy of International Law in The Netherlands.
Only then did David kickstart his career, initially serving as an Associate at Conrad, O’Brien, Gellman & Rohn before finding himself clerking for Chief Judge Louis C. Bechtle in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1992 to 1995. It was only after that that he began specializing in commercial as well as class action litigation at Kohn, Swift & Graf PC as an Associate prior to mixing his passion for explorations into his title as an attorney too. That’s how he established Explorer Consulting plus Concannon & Charles in 2002, where the former provides advice on safe adventure travels in various industries while the latter is simply a boutique law firm representing clients from across the globe.
So of course David eventually found himself being associated with the 2009-established OceanGate, a private organization that did its own research before helping individuals go down to epxlore Titanic’s wreck in the North Atlantic OCean. The truth is he himself had undertaken this expedition thrice in the years to follow, yet he had to cancel the scheduled June 18, 2023 trip owing to an emergency client a mere two days before. Though little did he know this would save his life as the vessel used for this, the Titan submersible, sadly imploded within two hours of its deep ocean journey, a fact that wasn’t confirmed until debris was recovered four days later, throughout which period he was helping authorities.
Where is David Concannon Now?
Despite everything to have gone by, it’s evident David’s passion for the seas, nature, and our environment, in general, hasn’t deteriorated, which is why he continues to serve as the Founder & principal at both Explorer Consulting plus Concannon & Charles to this day. Moreover, on a professional level, he’s Chair of the Rolex Expedition Watch Committee and legally specializes in corporate, entertainment, marine & admiralty, personal, and non-profit organizations litigation Law. More importantly, despite the fact he has tried numerous cases to verdict in state and federal courts over the years, he hasn’t lost a single trial since 1995. On a more personal level, it appears as if David currently splits his time between Sun Valley, Idaho, and Ocean City, New Jersey, where he happily resides alongside his wife Kim Frank and their four children.
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