A heartbroken mother who lost her husband and son on the Titan submersible has paid a moving tribute to them on the first anniversary of their deaths.
Christine Dawood’s husband Shahzada, 48, and Rubik’s Cube fanatic Suleman, 19, were two of five passengers who died on the Titanic-bound expedition.
Billionaire Shahzada was a trustee of the SETI Institute, a non-profit research organization, and had also worked with the Prince’s Trust.
Posting a photo of a lit candle on Facebook, she wrote: “When people pass by, they take a piece of you with them.”
‘As the first anniversary approaches, I am reflecting on a moment that almost broke me and yet the love and support I received was, and still is, so great that I can’t feel anything other than being grateful.
‘I miss them every day, every hour, every minute, they will never be replaced. With these candles, I would like to send their light to anyone who is open enough to receive it.
Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman (pictured) died during a dive in the North Atlantic to view the wreckage of the Titanic, off the coast of Newfoundland, on the ship Titan.
Christine Dawood (pictured) said the deaths “almost broke her”, speaking a year later.
One hour and 45 minutes after plunging into the North Atlantic off the coast of Newfoundland, the Titan lost communication with its support ship, the Polar Prince.
In a Facebook post, Mrs Dawood said: “When people pass by, they take a piece of you with them.”
‘I would like to thank everyone for their love and prayers. I felt them and they helped me.
‘Light a candle for the missing people in your life and send their light to the world.’
The disaster occurred on June 18 last year when the 21-foot ship lost contact with its mother ship after plunging into the wreckage of the Titanic off the coast of Newfoundland.
Authorities later announced that they believed the Titan had imploded when it reached a depth of 12,500 feet and a debris field was discovered.
Four months after the tragedy, in October, coast guard officials revealed that they had recovered human remains from the site and removed them for analysis.
In addition to Shahzada and Suleman, others who died on the expedition included Hamish Harding, French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeole and Stockton Rush, chief executive of Ocean Gate, the company that organized the trip.
In December 2023, Christine posted another tribute to her husband and son. Along with an image of herself in the sea.
She said: ‘Every time I touch the ocean, I feel it, because now you are part of it.
‘When the waves caress my skin, it’s like their whispers of love around me. Six months later and I still can’t believe it.
I may look helpless, but my heart doesn’t. I feel gratitude towards the people who surround me, who walk beside me, who catch me when I stumble, and who make me laugh even when I feel like crying.
‘It has been the most challenging year I have ever known and yet I am still standing.
Suleman Dawood was just 19 years old when he went on a trip with his father to see the Titanic.
The father and son were among a group of tourists diving to depths of 12,500 feet to see the wreckage of the liner, after paying $250,000 each.
Remains of the Titan submersible, recovered from the ocean floor near the wreck
‘See with your eyes closed. Feeling with my bleeding heart moving with my root deepening, flying with my shattered wings, listening with the wind in my hair, so that one day I can love again with all that I am.’
Another post from last August read: ‘I can’t believe it’s been eight weeks already.
‘Eight weeks of waking up to an empty bed.
‘Eight weeks without hugging or kissing them. Eight weeks without hearing their laughter, jokes and even complaints (sic).
‘But there is no life without death, just as there is no light without darkness and shadows.
‘His lights shine brightly and although I feel like I am in the dark right now, I can feel his light, his warmth and his love in everything around me.
‘They are now part of the circle of life, and being in nature, watching fruits and flowers grow, reminds me that we all have to move on one day. Until I see you again.’
He also said Suleman had been an “incredible gift.” She was at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, studying business analysis and human resources and intending to work with his father in the family business, when they boarded the Polar Prince to visit the wreck of the Titanic in the Titan submersible.
Five people were on board, including British billionaire adventurer Hamish Harding and Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman.
French Navy veteran PH Nargeolet (left) was on the submarine along with Stockton Rush (right), executive director of the OceanGate Expedition.
Sidonie Nargeolet with her father Paul Henri-Nargeolet, who died on the underwater voyage Titan
French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, was one of five killed when a submersible imploded on a voyage to the wreckage of the Titanic a year ago.
It comes after the grieving daughter of another of those killed in the Titan tragedy spoke out to say her father, known as ‘Mr. Titanic’, died doing what he loved most.
French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, was one of five killed when a submersible imploded on a voyage to the wreckage of the Titanic a year ago.
Before the first anniversary, his daughter Sidonie Nargeolet, 40, said he must have been “super happy” and had a “very good death.”
She told the Sunday Times that her father died doing his favorite activity and passed away “healthy and with his mind intact.”
The last time she spoke to him when he arrived on the Polar Prince, the ship from which the submarine took off, he was “happy.”
But at 6 a.m. the next day, she was told the Titan was missing and she said she “cried for 10 minutes.”