Titan Sub Victim Suleman Dawood, 19, Was ‘Terrified’ To Go On Expedition To Titanic, But Dad Convinced Him To Go On Father’s Day

Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood were both victims of the submersible implosion that occurred this week.

Suleman, who was only 19, told his aunt, Azmeh Dawood, a few days before the expedition that he was “terrified” of going on the sub. The only reason he decided to go was to please his dad for Father’s Day. 

Shahzada apparently loved the Titanic and was obsessed with the wreck since he was a kid. When he learned about this expedition, he jumped at the opportunity, thinking it would be a memorable experience for him and his son. 

Azmeh shared how she feels devastated about what has happened to her family. 

“I am thinking of Suleman, who is 19, in there, just perhaps gasping for breath … It’s been crippling, to be honest,” she told NBC News in an interview. 

The Dawood family is currently grieving the loss of their two family members, whose deaths were announced on Thursday by the Coast Guard.

Before this announcement, they had been waiting days for updates, scrambling to find any new information on the case. 

Azmeh expressed her “disbelief” over the situation.

“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,” she said. “I personally have found it kind of difficult to breathe thinking of them.”

In the past years, Azmeh and Shahzada had a falling out when in 2014 Azmeh moved to Amsterdam with her husband to have better access to cannabis, which she used to treat her multiple sclerosis. Shahzada disapproved of her using cannabis and this drove a wedge in their relationship, leading them to speak less frequently.

Despite this, she still loves her brother and remembers him as a generous person. She is heartbroken over his death.

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“He was my baby brother,” Azmeh said. “I held him up when he was born.”

The Dawood family thanks everyone for their kind thoughts and prayers saying that, “The immense love and support we receive continues to help us endure this unimaginable loss.”