Nineteen-year-old Suleman Dawood – one of the passengers of the imploded Titan submarine – expressed “concerns” about the trip to the wreck of the RMS Titanic, his aunt disclosed.
According to the details, Azmeh Dawood, the older sister of Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, revealed in an interview that her nephew had initially been hesitant to go on the trip, telling a relative he felt “terrified” about the underwater excursion.
Read more: Confirmed deaths in submersible catastrophe during Titanic exploration
Explaining that her nephew “wasn’t very up for it” at first, Azmeh said that the teen ended up going on the trip because it fell on Father’s Day, and he wanted to please his dad Shahzada, who was passionate about the lore of the Titanic.
She shared her disbelief and described the experience as “unreal,” and said that the emotional toll has been overwhelming for her.
This is so sad, the 19 year old passenger on Titan with his dad didn’t really want to go. He only did to please his dad. #implosion https://t.co/ZDDpEtZvbM
— Austin (@AustinPlanet) June 22, 2023
OceanGate’s Titan tragedy
OceanGate’s submersible, the Titan, lost contact with the surface approximately an hour and 45 minutes into its June 18 dive. On board were five passengers; OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush; Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman Dawood; British billionaire Hamish Harding; and French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
Oxygen on board the submersible was expected to run out between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. on Thursday. Fearing that the crew would run out of oxygen, a massive search-and-rescue mission for the sub was launched with the US, France, and Canada in collaboration.
Read more: Vice Chairman Engro Shahzada Dawood, son go missing in Atlantic Ocean
However, officials confirmed on June 22 that rescuers found debris from an external part of the submersible “consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber.”
The US Coast Guard said all passengers are presumed dead and offered its “deepest condolences” to the families after the tail cone of the submersible was found around 1,600ft from the bow of the Titanic wreckage.
In a press conference, Rear Admiral John Mauger said further debris was “consistent with a catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber.”