(The Hill) — The estate of the French man Paul-Henri Nargeolet filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit on Tuesday against OceanGate, the company that created the Titan submersible that exploded last year.
The lawsuit was filed in King County, Washington, against the underwater exploration company that intended to bring five people to the wreck site of the Titanic at the bottom of the ocean in June 2023.
All five people, including Nargeolet, were killed when the submersible imploded after a days-long frenzy to find the craft before they ran out of oxygen after it lost communication.
The lawsuit alleges “serious issues” with the submersible and its “troubled history.”
After the international search-and-rescue mission concluded, OceanGate’s legitimacy was called into question after reports revealed its CEO, Stockton Rush, who was also killed in the mission, may have cut corners when constructing the submarine.
This photo provided by OceanGate Expeditions shows a submersible vessel named Titan used to visit the wreckage site of the Titanic.(OceanGate Expeditions via AP) 
This photo provided by Travel Weekly shows OceanGate Expeditions CEO Stockton Rush on May 27, 2023. Rush was piloting the Titan submersible when it imploded near the wreckage of the Titanic, killing all five people on board, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Thursday, June 22, 2023. (Arnie Weissmann/Travel Weekly via AP) 
FILE – Submersible pilot Randy Holt, right, communicates with the support boat as he and Stockton Rush, left, CEO and Co-Founder of OceanGate, dive in the company’s submersible, “Antipodes,” about three miles off the coast of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., June 28, 2013. Rescuers are racing against time to find the missing submersible carrying five people, who were reported overdue Sunday night, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File) 
FILE – This undated image provided by OceanGate Expeditions in June 2021 shows the company’s Titan submersible. OceanGate, the company that owned the submersible that fatally imploded on its way to explore the wreck of the Titanic said Thursday, July 6, 2023 it has suspended operations. (OceanGate Expeditions via AP, File) 
A U.S. Coast Guard ship arrives in the harbor of St. John’s, Newfoundland, on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, following the arrival of the ship Horizon Arctic carrying debris from the Titan submersible. The submersible owned by OceanGate Expeditions imploded on its way to the wreck of the Titanic. (Paul Daly/The Canadian Press via AP) 
FILE – Debris from the Titan submersible, recovered from the ocean floor near the wreck of the Titanic, is unloaded from the ship Horizon Arctic at the Canadian Coast Guard pier in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Wednesday, June 28, 2023. OceanGate, the company that owned a submersible that imploded on its way to explore the wreck of the Titanic, killing all five onboard, said Thursday, July 6, that it has suspended operations. (Paul Daly/The Canadian Press via AP, File) 
This photo combo shows OceanGate Expeditions’ Titan submersible (top) and The Pisces IV submersible (bottom). The Titan, developed and operated by OceanGate Expeditions, was touted for a design that included a carbon fiber hull, an elongated cabin for crew and passengers, and more. But outside experts say the design and construction of the submersible put greater stress on its structure. (AP Photo/File) 
A crane truck and a boat with OceanGate logos are parked near the offices of the company in Everett, Wash., Tuesday, June 20, 2023. Rescuers are racing against time to find the missing submersible carrying five people, who were reported overdue Sunday night. (AP Photo/Ed Komenda) 
The logo for OceanGate Expeditions is seen on a boat parked near the offices of the company at a marine industrial warehouse office door in Everett, Wash., Tuesday, June 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Ed Komenda)
“I think it’s telling that even though the University of Washington and Boeing had key roles in the design of previous but similar versions of the Titan, both have recently disclaimed any involvement at all in the submersible model that imploded,” Tony Buzbee, a lawyer for the lawsuit, said in a statement.
Buzbee said he is hopeful the lawsuit will help the family get answers about what happened and who was involved.
Nargeolet, known as “Mr. Titanic,” participated in 37 dives to the Titanic site, the most of any diver in the world. He was regarded as one of the most knowledgeable people about the crash and was designated as an employee of OceanGate, The Associated Press reported.
The attorneys argue that Rush failed to disclose key facts about the condition of the submersible, which imploded less than two hours after descending.
Previous passengers on the Titan said they knew that an implosion was going to happen at some point because of all the technological glitches the submarine had and pointed to Rush as an “overconfident pioneer,” the AP reported last year.
OceanGate suspended all operations last July after the implosion.
A spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit, the AP said.
