Scott Parazynski

OceanGate co-founder Guillermo Söhnlein is going to the 'portal to Hell' hole in the Bahamas with scientist Kenny Broad and former NASA astronaut Scott Parazynski.

OceanGate co-founder Guillermo Söhnlein is going to the 'portal to Hell' hole in the Bahamas with scientist Kenny Broad and former NASA astronaut Scott Parazynski. The hole is the third deepest in the world and has claimed the lives of 130 to 200 divers. The announcement comes amid the first anniversary of the Titan submersible tragedy that claimed five lives during its expedition to the site of the Titanic.

According to legal experts, families of the Titan submersible victims may sue OceanGate, the vessel's designer and companies that supplied parts. If a family's negligence was discovered and a cause of the implosion, lawyers said they could sue any outside parties interested in the Titan's construction if they were found to be negligent and a cause of the implosion. According to experts, wrongful death and negligence cases could be filed by the victims' families, who paid $250,000 each to fly 12,500ft below the surface of the Atlantic. The five passengers who died are reported to have been required to sign liability waivers before they boarded the ship, which exploded near the Titanic wreck on June 18. This waiver could play a significant role in court proceedings as families consider their choices, but a significant complicating factor is that the incident occurred in international waters. Logistics manager Scott Griffith (left), chief financial officer Doug Gorder (centre), and former Nasa astronaut Scott Parazynski (right) are among the OceanGate leaders whose involvement could result in legal proceedings, but there is no suggestion that any will be charged.