Woman who lost family on Titan sub says bodies were returned as 'slush'

A widower whose husband and son were on the Titan submersible when it imploded has shared some brutal allegations surrounding the incident.

Speaking to The Guardian this week, Christine Dawood described the horrific nature her family's bodies were allegedly in as they were returned to her for burial.

Christine's husband, 48-year-old Shahzada and her 19-year-old son, Suleman, lost their lives as the Oceangate submersible they were traveling in imploded on June 18 2023, as it was heading to the wreck of the Titanic.

They were just 500m above the wreck when the disaster struck; a tragedy that reverberated in headlines around the world.

OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, 61, British billionaire Hamish Harding, 58, and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, were also killed in the implosion.

The US coastguard led the search for the Titan submersible (OceanGate/Becky Kagan Schott)

Christine revealed that tragically, she was initially down to go on the submersible, before giving her $250,000 ticket to her son.

As if the agony of losing a large chunk of her family wasn't enough, she revealed a gruelling nine-month wait to get their bodies back.

Christine said: "We didn’t get the bodies for nine months.

"Well, when I say bodies, I mean the slush that was left. They came in two small boxes, like shoeboxes."

She claimed that the 'slush' was assembled by whatever the US Coast Guard investigators could recover from the sea floor and then separate via DNA testing.

What remains came from the Titan submersible disaster?

Shahzada and Suleman Dawood were two of the individuals who lost their lives on the sub (Family Handout)

Christine added: "There wasn't much they could find. They have a big pile they can't separate, all mixed DNA, and they asked if I wanted some of that too.

"I said no, just what you know is Suleman and Shahzada."

Investigators told Christine that debris found on the ocean floor was consistent with what investigators determined a 'catastrophic implosion'.

She said her initial reaction was, perhaps surprisingly, one of relief.

Christine admitted: "My first thought was, thank God.

"When they said catastrophic, I knew Shahzada and Suleman didn’t even know about it. One moment they were there and the next they weren’t."

"Knowing they didn’t suffer has been so important. They’re gone, but the way they went does somehow make it easier," she added.

It's hard to imagine the grief that Christine has experienced following the disaster.

Christine Dawood described the horrific nature her family's bodies were allegedly returned in (ITV)

She said that she had been helped by a member of the Canadian Coast Guard, who gave her a great piece of advice on how to deal with the tragic nature of her loss.

Christina said: "A very experienced woman with blond hair, I forget her name, gave me the best advice I’ve ever gotten: 'Hindsight won’t help you, so don’t fall into that trap. Just because you know it now … you didn’t know it before'.

"I’ve always remembered her telling me that.

"Suleman wanted to go, and I was happy to give up the seat. I was happy for him to make memories with his father. I can’t change that."

What happened to the Titan submersible?

The US Coast Guard holding a press conference after the disaster (JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)

The Titan submersible disaster was caused by a catastrophic implosion resulting from poor engineering, inadequate testing, and the failure of its experimental carbon fiber hull.

The US Coast Guard investigation (as of late 2025) found the vessel’s design and maintenance were flawed, and the company ignored safety warnings, resulting in an 'avoidable' tragedy.

UNILAD has contacted the US Coast Guard for comment.