Recently, the OceanGate Titan, a submersible craft that does tours to the wreckage site of the Titanic, went missing. A massive search and rescue operation is currently underway. Among the passengers are one of Pakistan's richest businessmen and his son.
Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his 19-year-old son, Suleman Dawood, are among the passengers aboard the sub. Their family are frantically awaiting and hoping for their safe return home.
“We are very grateful for the concern being shown by our colleagues and friends and would like to request everyone to pray for their safety while granting the family privacy at this time,” the family wrote in a statement. “The family is well looked after and are praying to Allah for the safe return of their family members.”
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The Titanic-bound sub was reported missing Sunday night. It had launched earlier that morning but failed to make a return to the Canadian research ship.
There are five passengers in all aboard the sub. Aside from Shahzada and his son, the other passengers are 58-year-old Hamish Harding, 61-year-old Stockton Rush, and 77-year-old Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
The ship, called the Polar Prince, lost contact with the sub a little under two hours after it had launched. The crew has been unable to reestablish communication.
OceanGate Inc. launched in 2009. It began recruiting "citizen explorers" in 2019 for a six-week expedition to the Titanic. The trip costs passengers roughly $250,000 per ticket.
The Dawood family is among the richest in Pakistan. They own Dawood Hercules Corporation Limited, which is a public investment holding company that focuses on agriculture, industries, and the health sector. Shahzada is vice chairman of Engro Corporation, one of its subsidiary companies.
The search and rescue opertions are still in full effect. According to live updates, the sub has about 41 hours of oxygen left.
