Azmeh Dawood is mourning the loss of two family members who were passengers aboard the Titanic submersible.
Pakistani businessman Shazada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman were among the five people now believed to be dead after the 21-foot submersible, called Titan, went missing June 18 while visiting the wreckage of the RMS Titanic, which sank in 1912. And amid her mourning, Azemah admits nothing could have convinced her to board sub.
"If you gave me a million dollars," Dawood told NBC News on June 22, "I would not have gotten into the Titan."
Sharing she was "absolutely heartbroken" that her brother and his son were on the Titan, she also touched on the high-stakes, four-day rescue mission to find the submersible before it ran out of oxygen in the morning of June 22. She added, "I feel very bad that the whole world has had to go through so much trauma, so much suspense."
"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," Dawood continued. "I personally have found it kind of difficult to breathe thinking of them."
The Titan submersible was operated by OceanGate, a private company that offers trips to view the remains of the Titanic. Titan went missing on June 18, losing contact with Canadian research vessel Polar Prince an hour and 45 minutes into its expedition. On June 22, officials identified debris from the Titan, suggesting that the pieces indicate the occurrence of a "catastrophic event," according to NBC News.
That same day, OceanGate said in a statement that they believe the five passengers aboard the Titan—which included the company's CEO Stockton Rush—were no longer alive.
"We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost," OceanGate's statement read. "These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world's oceans. Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew."
Keep scrolling to learn more about the five lives believed to be lost aboard the Titan submersible.