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One two-month journey around the Land Down Under has been cancelled following the death of an senior female passenger who was left behind by the cruise liner on a remote island.

The elderly woman had been trekking on the tropical location with shipmates from the Coral Adventurer, but separated from the party for a pause. The vessel left without her and returned after some time after the ship staff discovered the lady was unaccounted for.

A large-scale hunt found her remains the next day.

Investigative bodies are looking into the tragedy, alongside investigators and the state coroner.

Chief Executive of the cruise operator said that passengers and staff on the vessel were told that the rest of the voyage had been cancelled due to the "tragic passing and prior technical problems".

Via official communication, he added that guests would be given a total repayment, and said the company was working "to organize the return journeys of the individuals via chartered flights".

Authorities also released an latest communication, and said they had "delivered a order to the Captain" prohibiting any new passengers from entering the ship.

The spokesperson said that they would inspect the vessel in Cairns upon its arrival.

Timeline of Occurrences

The liner originally sailed from Cairns on October 24th, and was merely two days into the expedition at the time of the 80-year-old's passing. Lizard Island was the first stop on the itinerary.

Passengers on the ship - who usually pay substantial amounts of dollars to join the voyage - were ferried there for a day trip with the possibility of hiking or snorkelling.

Relatives Response

The child of the victim said that her family was "stunned and saddened that the ship left Lizard Island after an scheduled excursion without my parent".

Via her announcement, she described her mother as an "active 80-year-old" who was a member of a bushwalking club.

"From the little facts we have been provided, it appears that there was a lapse of responsibility and common sense," she mentioned.

She added that she hoped the inquiry would be able to determine what "the company should have undertaken that might have saved Mum's existence".

"We understand from the authorities that it was a extremely warm afternoon, and she fell ill on the uphill trek," she explained.

"She was asked her to return, unescorted. Then the vessel left, reportedly without conducting a roll call.

"At some stage in that chain of events, or soon after, she passed away, by herself."

Company Reaction

Through an announcement, the CEO affirmed that the organization was "collaborating extensively with investigators to assist their investigation".

He said that the firm was "extremely apologetic that this has occurred" and had provided its full support to the family.

Cruise Industry Procedures

The ship caters for up to 120 travelers with nearly fifty crew, according to corporate information. It was specifically designed to reach distant locations of the nation's coast and is equipped with "auxiliary vessels" - small boats used to ferry individuals on shore trips.

Events like this are infrequent, and passenger vessels have systems to document which individuals are boarding or getting off, according to industry experts.

"Going ashore secretly or [back] aboard really isn't an possibility," an authority remarked.

Cruise lines consider these processes with great importance and have "sophisticated systems in place to prevent such incidents from happening," the authority continued.

"This seems to be presumably a surprising - and sad - isolated incident."