Christine Dawood lost her son and her husband during the submarine “Titan” dive. In an interview she talks about her life after the accident.
LONDON — Almost seven months ago, Suleman and Shahzada Dawood died aboard the submarine Titan, which imploded while inspecting the Titanic wreckage. But Christine Dawood still can't believe that her husband Shahzada and their son Suleman are no longer with her.
Christine Dawood talks about relatives who died in accidents: The world should remember them
In a long interview with the British daily newspaper Daily Mail, the mother now breaks her silence. She was unable to talk about the accident for a long time. But she wants the world to remember her husband and son. Not a day goes by that she doesn't miss them both, she says in the conversation. “It's waking up every morning that… Sometimes I still can't believe it. The possibility that the submarine could implode never occurred to us.” Even more tragic: Christine should actually have been on board the “Titan”. Because her son showed such interest in the expedition, she gave him her ticket.
On June 18, Suleman and Shazada boarded the Titan, while Christine and her daughter Alina followed the expedition aboard the Polar Prince, the submarine's escort ship. But shortly after the start of the dive in the North Atlantic, the “Titan” lost connection to the escort ship. The occupants were then searched for four days in an extensive rescue operation. Then the sad certainty: there are no survivors, only rubble can be recovered from the machine. Now when Christine thinks about her son and husband, they would be sleeping in the ocean.
After fatal submarine disaster: Mother celebrates birthday of accident-prone “Titan” passenger
Suleman would have turned 20 on January 8th. Just like when he was alive, his mother bought balloons for him this year too. She does this to remember him and his father. Her son was a student at Strathclyde University in Glasgow. He wanted to set a world record on the dive.
It's particularly difficult for Christine not to know exactly what happened. Investigations to clear up the case are still ongoing. “But I’m very angry,” says the 48-year-old. Even before the “Titan” dived, there were indications of security gaps and serious technical deficiencies and problems with the submarine. In addition, the machine did not have any official certification. (jus)
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