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One extended journey through Australia has been cancelled days after the death of an older female passenger who was left behind by the ship on a distant coastal location.

The passenger had been walking on Lizard Island with fellow passengers from the Coral Adventurer, but parted ways from the group for a pause. The ship departed without her and came back several hours later after the crew discovered the passenger was not present.

A major rescue mission found her body the following day.

Authorities are investigating the incident, together with investigators and the medical examiner.

The CEO of the cruise operator said that passengers and crew on the vessel were notified that the rest of the voyage had been cancelled due to the "tragic passing and earlier mechanical issues".

Through an announcement, he further stated that guests would be given a total repayment, and said the company was working "to arrange the travel back of the travelers via chartered flights".

Regulatory bodies also issued an updated announcement, and said they had "delivered a directive to the Master" prohibiting any new passengers from entering the vessel.

The official said that they would visit the vessel in Cairns upon its return.

Timeline of Occurrences

The vessel originally sailed from Cairns on the 24th of October, and was just two days into the journey at the point of the 80-year-old's death. Lizard Island was the opening port on the journey.

Guests on board - who typically pay large sums of money to join the voyage - were taken there for a day trip with the option of walking or snorkelling.

Relatives Response

The offspring of the victim said that her relatives was "shocked and grieved that the liner left Lizard Island after an scheduled tour without my mum".

In her statement, she characterized her mother as an "vigorous elderly person" who was a participant of a walking club.

"From the little facts we have been told, it appears that there was a breakdown of responsibility and common sense," she said.

She added that she desired the examination would be able to pinpoint what "the organization should have undertaken that might have preserved Her existence".

"According to reports from the police that it was a exceptionally warm period, and mum became unwell on the mountain ascent," she revealed.

"They requested her to head down, alone. Then the vessel departed, apparently without doing a passenger count.

"At some stage in that chain of events, or soon after, mum died, by herself."

Organization Response

In a statement, the Chief Executive confirmed that the operator was "working closely with investigators to assist their inquiry".

He mentioned that the organization was "very regretful that this has transpired" and had extended its total backing to the relatives.

Cruise Industry Standards

The vessel serves up to a hundred twenty travelers with nearly fifty personnel, according to company data. It was purpose-built to access distant locations of the Australian coastline and is outfitted with "small boats" - small boats used to take passengers on shore trips.

Occurrences like this are uncommon, and liners have systems to record which travelers are getting on or getting off, according to industry experts.

"Leaving covertly or [back] aboard really isn't an possibility," an authority commented.

Cruise lines regard these methods extremely carefully and have "clever tech in place to stop such incidents from taking place," the expert continued.

"This is probably a stunning - and unfortunate - single occurrence."