INDEPENDENT
The son of a Pakistani businessman who is now presumed dead along with his father after their Titanic tour submersible imploded was terrified of the daring expedition, his aunt has revealed.
The US Coast Guard announced during a Thursday press conference that the missing Titan’s pressure chamber was found among other debris, approximately 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic on the ocean floor. In a statement to The Independent, OceanGate — the private company that operated the $250,000-a-seat expedition — confirmed that the five passengers aboard the vessel are now believed dead.
The victims have been identified by family members as OceanGate Expeditions founder and CEO Stockton Rush, British billionaire Hamish Harding, renowned French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani billionaire Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman.
In an interview published before the tragic developments were announced, Dawood’s sister Azmeh Dawood told NBC News that her nephew was absolutely scared, and only agreed to go on the expedition because it was important to his “Titanic-obsessed” father. Suleman reportedly told family members he was concerned about the tour and “wasn’t very up for it.”
“I feel like I’ve been caught in a really bad film, with a countdown, but you didn’t know what you’re counting down to,” Ms Dawood told NBC. “I personally have found it kind of difficult to breathe thinking of them.”
Ms Dawood said that she wouldn’t have gotten into the Titan “for a million dollars”, also noting that she was ”absolutely heartbroken,” before the US Coast Guard announced ROVs (remotely-operated vehicles) found debris linked to the Titan.
“I feel very bad that the whole world has had to go through so much trauma, so much suspense,” she said…
