A 60-day voyage circling the Land Down Under was terminated days after the tragic passing of an senior female passenger who was abandoned by the ship on a distant island.
The passenger had been trekking on the tropical location with shipmates from the Coral Adventurer, but separated from the group for a break. The ship departed without her and came back after some time after the crew realised the lady was unaccounted for.
An extensive search operation discovered her remains the following day.
Investigative bodies are looking into the tragedy, alongside law enforcement and the state coroner.
Head of the cruise operator stated that guests and staff on the vessel were told that the remainder of the journey had been terminated due to the "sad loss and prior technical problems".
In a statement, he further stated that passengers would be provided a total repayment, and said the operator was working "to coordinate the travel back of the travelers via chartered flights".
Regulatory bodies also issued an revised announcement, and said they had "provided a directive to the Captain" prohibiting any further travelers from entering the vessel.
The spokesperson said that they would inspect the ship in the Australian city upon its arrival.
The vessel first departed Cairns on the 24th of October, and was just two days into the expedition at the time of the senior passenger's death. The remote island was the initial destination on the journey.
Travelers on the ship - who usually pay substantial amounts of dollars to participate in the cruise - were transported there for a shore visit with the option of hiking or snorkelling.
The offspring of the victim said that her relatives was "stunned and grieved that the ship left the island after an scheduled outing without my mum".
Through her comments, she portrayed her mother as an "vigorous 80-year-old" who was a member of a bushwalking group.
"According to scant facts we have been informed, it seems that there was a breakdown of attention and ordinary reasoning," she mentioned.
She added that she wished the examination would be able to identify what "the operator should have performed that might have saved Mother's existence".
"According to reports from the authorities that it was a extremely warm afternoon, and mother took sick on the mountain ascent," she explained.
"She was asked her to go back, without accompaniment. Then the vessel left, reportedly without conducting a headcount.
"At some stage in that chain of events, or not long after, mum passed away, without company."
In a statement, the Chief Executive verified that the organization was "cooperating fully with officials to support their examination".
He mentioned that the organization was "deeply sorry that this has transpired" and had extended its full support to the loved ones.
The liner accommodates up to 120 passengers with nearly fifty crew, according to company details. It was specially constructed to reach isolated regions of Australia's coast and is outfitted with "small boats" - minor craft used to take travelers on land visits.
Incidents such as this are uncommon, and passenger vessels have procedures to document which passengers are getting on or getting off, according to industry experts.
"Going ashore secretly or [back] onboard simply isn't an choice," a specialist stated.
Vessel operators take these processes with great importance and have "clever tech in place to prevent such incidents from happening," the expert continued.
"This seems to be probably a stunning - and sad - single occurrence."
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