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A 60-day cruise around the Land Down Under has been cancelled days after the tragic passing of an senior female passenger who was left behind by the ship on a remote coastal location.

The elderly woman had been trekking on the tropical location with other travelers from the Coral Adventurer, but broke off from the group for a rest. The ship departed without her and returned later that day after the ship staff realised the passenger was not present.

A large-scale search operation found her remains the following day.

Investigative bodies are looking into the event, alongside law enforcement and the state coroner.

Chief Executive of the voyage organizer announced that travelers and staff on the ship were told that the rest of the voyage had been called off due to the "tragic passing and prior engine troubles".

In a statement, he added that passengers would be provided a total repayment, and said the operator was working "to arrange the return journeys of the travelers via private aircraft".

Regulatory bodies also issued an updated announcement, and said they had "issued a order to the Commander" preventing any further travelers from entering the liner.

The representative said that they would visit the vessel in the Australian city upon its return.

Timeline of Occurrences

The vessel originally sailed from the coastal city on October 24th, and was merely two days into the expedition at the time of the 80-year-old's demise. Lizard Island was the opening port on the voyage.

Passengers on board - who typically pay large sums of dollars to join the expedition - were transported there for a day trip with the option of trekking or snorkelling.

Next of Kin Reaction

The daughter of the elderly passenger said that her relatives was "surprised and grieved that the vessel left the island after an scheduled excursion without my mum".

Via her announcement, she described her parent as an "active octogenarian" who was a affiliate of a hiking club.

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

She continued that she hoped the inquiry would be able to determine what "the operator should have performed that might have protected Mum's existence".

"We understand from the police that it was a exceptionally warm afternoon, and she took sick on the uphill trek," she revealed.

"She was asked her to head down, unescorted. Then the boat sailed away, apparently without performing a roll call.

"At a certain moment in that chain of events, or not long after, she died, by herself."

Organization Reaction

Through an announcement, the Chief Executive affirmed that the operator was "cooperating fully with investigators to support their examination".

He said that the firm was "extremely apologetic that this has happened" and had extended its total backing to the family.

Cruise Industry Standards

The vessel serves up to a hundred twenty travelers with forty-six crew, according to official data. It was specially constructed to enter isolated regions of Australia's coast and is outfitted with "tenders" - compact vessels used to ferry travelers on day excursions.

Incidents of this nature are uncommon, and cruise ships have protocols to record which passengers are boarding or getting off, according to maritime specialists.

"Leaving covertly or [back] aboard really isn't an choice," a specialist remarked.

Shipping companies consider these procedures very seriously and have "sophisticated systems in place to prevent such events from taking place," the expert continued.

"This seems to be most likely a shocking - and unfortunate - isolated incident."