A couple in Florida has dropped a lawsuit against OceanGate after the company's CEO died when its submersible imploded last week. The CEO, Stockton Rush, was among the five people who were on board the Titan sub when it started its journey towards the Titanic shipwreck 3,700 metres below the surface of Atlantic Ocean. According to Independent, Marc and Sharon Hagle had filed the lawsuit in February claiming Mr Rush had repeatedly cancelled a deep-sea dive they had booked on the Titan submersible in 2018.
But after the news of Mr Rush's death emerged, the couple said the "honour, respect and dignity" of the victims were more important than their claim.
"Like most around the world, we have watched the coverage of the OceanGate Titan capsule with great concern and enormous amount of sadness and compassion for the families of those who lost their lives," they told Fox35.
"In light of these tragic events, we have informed our attorneys to withdraw all legal actions against Stockton," the couple further said.
The Hagles' legal battle was based on the $210,000 deposit they made to OceanGate hoping to become among the first of the deep-sea exploration company's paying customers, as per the Independent report.
But, in their lawsuit filed in Orange County, the couple said they became suspicious after learning that the submersible was not going to be ready by the planned departure date.
The Hagles said they wanted to pull out of the expedition and requested a refund of their deposit.
On June 18 (Sunday), the vessel finally began its descent towards the Titanic but lost contact with the controlling ship within two hours. Four days later, the US Coast Guard announced that Titan suffered a "catastrophic implosion", killing all five on board.
Mr Rush died along with Pakistani father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, British billionaire Hamish Harding and prominent French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
