The family of a French explorer who died in a submarine implosion has filed a wrongful death lawsuit accusing the submarine’s operator of gross negligence and seeking more than $50 million.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet was one of five people who died when the Titan submarine imploded during a trip to the famous Titanic wreck site in the North Atlantic Ocean in June 2023. No one survived the journey aboard the experimental submarine owned by OceanGate, a Washington state company that has since suspended operations.
Known as “Mr. Titanic,” Nargeolet had said visited the Titanic site many times before and was considered one of the world’s most knowledgeable people about the famous wreck. Lawyers for his estate said in an emailed statement that the “doomed submarine” had a “troubled history” and that OceanGate failed to disclose key facts about the vessel and its sustainability.
“The lawsuit further alleges that although Nargeolet was designated by OceanGate as a member of the ship’s crew, many of the details of the ship’s defects and shortcomings were not made public and were deliberately concealed,” the lawyers said. Buzbee Law. Houston, Texas-based firm said in their statement.
A spokesperson for OceanGate declined to comment on the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in King County, Washington.
Tony Buzbee, one of the attorneys on the case, said one of the goals of the lawsuit is to “get answers for the family about exactly how this happened, who all was involved and how those involved allowed this to happen .”
In the aftermath of the disaster, concerns arose over whether the Titan was doomed due to its unconventional design and its maker’s refusal to submit to independent audits that are standard in the industry. Its implosion also raised questions about the viability and future of private deep-sea exploration.
The US Coast Guard quickly launched a high-level investigation, which is still ongoing. a important public hearing that is part of the research that will take place in September.
Titan made its last dive on June 18, 2023, a Sunday morning, and lost contact with its support ship about two hours later. After a search and rescue mission that attracted attention around the world, the wreckage of the Titan was found on the ocean floor, about 1,000 feet off the bow of the Titanic, about 450 miles south of St. John’s. , Newfoundland.
CEO and co-founder of OceanGate, Stockton Rush, was operating the Titan when it imploded. In addition to Rush and Nargeolet, the implosion killed British adventurer Hamish Harding and two members of a prominent Pakistani family, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood.
The company that owns the salvage rights on the Titanic is in the middle of its first trip to the wreck site in years. Last month, RMS Titanic Inc., a Georgia-based company, launched its first expedition to the site since 2010 from Providence, Rhode Island.
Nargeolet was director of underwater research for RMS Titanic. Lawyers for his estate described him as a seasoned veteran of underwater exploration who would not have participated in the Titan expedition if the company had been more transparent.