Australian authorities are investigating after an 80-year-old woman abandoned on a Great Barrier Reef island by a cruise ship was found dead. The BBC writes it. Last week the woman was hiking on Lizard Island, 250km north of Cairns, with other passengers on the Coral Adventurer cruise ship, but she became separated from the group and the ship left without her but returned several hours later when the crew noticed the woman missing. The woman was found dead.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) said it was investigating and would meet the ship’s crew when it docks in Darwin later this week. The woman was on the first stop of a 60-day cruise around Australia, where tickets cost tens of thousands of dollars. According to the company’s website, the Coral Adventurer can accommodate up to 120 passengers with 46 crew members.
It was built specifically to reach remote areas of the Australian coast and is equipped with “tenders”, small boats used to transport passengers on day trips. Queensland Police said a report will be drawn up to be sent to the coroner on the woman’s “sudden and non-suspicious death”.