The family of French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet has initiated a wrongful death lawsuit seeking $50 million following the June 2023 implosion of the OceanGate Titan submersible.
At the age of 77, Nargeolet was one of five individuals aboard the Titan when it imploded while descending to investigate the Titanic wreck on June 18, 2023. All five occupants perished instantly.
Nargeolet’s family has accused OceanGate, the owner of the ill-fated vessel, of “ongoing carelessness, recklessness, and negligence.”
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The lawsuit, submitted in Washington state on Tuesday, also claims that OceanGate failed to reveal critical data regarding the Titan submersible’s durability and maintenance history.
The U.S. Coast Guard is currently conducting an investigation into the implosion, stating in June 2024 that the inquiry “will extend beyond the original timeline for completion.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet, director of a deep ocean research project dedicated to the Titanic, poses inside the new exhibition dedicated to the sunken ship, at ‘Paris Expo’, on May 31, 2013, in Paris. Over a century after the sinking of the famous ship, a Titanic exhibition in Paris will open to the public from June 1 to September 15, and promises to showcase “real objects, and real stories.” (Joël Saget / AFP via Getty Images)
“The lawsuit asserts that although Nargeolet was designated by OceanGate as a crew member, many critical issues regarding the vessel’s flaws and limitations were not disclosed and were intentionally hidden,” the family’s attorneys conveyed in a statement to the New York Post.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet, who served as the director of underwater exploration for the RMS Titanic, allegedly would not have joined the OceanGate Titan mission if the company had been more forthright about the submersible, according to his relatives.
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The family claims, “While Nargeolet may have passed away doing what he loved, his death — along with those of the other Titan crew members — was wrongful.”
An OceanGate spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit when approached by the Associated Press.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet, director of a deep ocean research project related to the Titanic, is seen inside a new exhibition focused on the sunken ship, at ‘Paris Expo’, on May 31, 2013, in Paris. A Titanic exhibition in Paris will present “real objects, and real stories” from June 1 to September 15, over a century after the ship’s sinking. (Joël Saget / AFP via Getty Images)
The tragic Titan submersible journey on June 18, 2023, resulted in the deaths of Nargeolet and four others: Stockton Rush, Hamish Harding, and father-son duo Shahzada and Suleman Dawood.
Jason Neubauer, chair of the Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation (MBI), stated in June 2024 that “The MBI is dedicated to fully comprehending the circumstances that led to this tragedy to avert similar incidents in the future.”
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Stockton Rush, CEO of OceanGate, was at the helm of the Titan submersible during the ill-fated expedition.
