Fans have slammed serial reality star Abbie Chatfield after she made “disrespectful” and “insensitive” comments about the Titan submarine incident that killed five people.
The OceanGate submersible was on an expedition to view the Titanic shipwreck when it lost communication and tracking capabilities and disappeared in the North Atlantic Ocean.
After a four-day search, a renowned Titanic expert, a billionaire adventurer, two men from one of Pakistan’s wealthiest families and the OceanGate CEO were confirmed to have died after the sub imploded.
On TikTok, Abbie put the billionaire passengers on blast for putting themselves in such a dangerous situation.
“The only reason billionaires have gotten into this f*cking tin can, honestly, is because they are so f*cking bored with their lives,” she claimed.
“They can do everything and they probably have done everything they want to do. So what next? Let’s go look at some rust at the bottom of the ocean.”
The FBOY Island Australia host noted that the adventurers had paid close to $360,000 AUD for a spot in the vessel with just “a tiny window over the toot”.
@abbiechatfield ♬ original sound – Abbie Chatfield
“If that’s your special interest, go for it babes,” Abbie conceded. “But a quarter of a million dollars to be run by an off-brand PlayStation controller? No thank you.
“Being a billionaire must suck if this is something that has brought them joy… It must be awful and boring and hideous because what the f*ck.”
What did Abbie Chatfield’s followers say about her comments about the sub tragedy?
Abbie’s comments didn’t land well amongst fans, who branded the radio host‘s words as “insensitive” and “harsh”.
“Social class is irrelevant,” one commented. “These are human beings & their families are grieving. Let’s all show respect.”
A second dubbed the video a “really distasteful take”, while noting that one of the passengers was a researcher.
In response, Abbie said she was “talking about the billionaires specifically”.
She added: “It’s me saying I can’t think why anyone would get in there. It makes no sense.”
“I love your work Abbie but this is a low blow,” another fan commented.
A few reality stars even weighed in via Instagram.
Married at First Sight 2022‘s Carolina Santos dubbed Abbie a “moron”. Meanwhile, 2018 groom Nasser Sultan said she had “no idea”.
“The sub is a tragedy and she is talking nonsense,” he wrote. “She’s a tragedy herself.”
Despite the backlash, some followers backed the former Bachelor breakout star’s opinion.
“Amazing, every single point was spot on,” one follower wrote.
Another penned: “Dunno why everyone is taking this the wrong way. It’s so true.”
Abbie Chatfield follows up first video with another take
Under a subsequent TikTok, more fans seemed to agree with the Verbose founder’s overarching thoughts.
Addressing followers while on set of The Masked Singer Australia 2023, Abbie said that asylum seekers and refugees who die at sea have never received the same attention as billionaires.
“The reason why I think this has so much press coverage is because people don’t understand why you’d do this as a tourist,” she told viewers.
@abbiechatfield Replying to @B🪐 ♬ original sound – Abbie Chatfield
“Why would you put yourself in that position unnecessarily? Asylum seekers and refugees, it is the only option for them, the only option left.”
“Thank you for speaking the truth,” one fan said, while another added: “Exactly this is so true. No one cares about the people that aren’t rich.”
Abbie maintained she wasn’t saying the passengers “deserved” to die, but was rather questioning their motivation for embarking on such a risky venture.
“I think it’s really sad … but also why would you do it?”
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