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One two-month voyage circling the Land Down Under has been cancelled in the wake of the tragic passing of an elderly woman who was abandoned by the cruise liner on a isolated island.

Suzanne Rees had been trekking on Lizard Island with other travelers from the cruise ship, but separated from the group for a rest. The liner left without her and came back several hours later after the crew realised the lady was unaccounted for.

A large-scale search operation found her body the next day.

Investigative bodies are looking into the tragedy, together with police and the state coroner.

Head of the voyage organizer said that travelers and crew on the vessel were notified that the continuation of the journey had been cancelled due to the "sad loss and prior mechanical issues".

In a statement, he further stated that passengers would be provided a complete reimbursement, and said the company was working "to organize the travel back of the individuals via chartered flights".

Authorities also released an revised announcement, and said they had "issued a directive to the Captain" banning any additional guests from boarding the vessel.

The spokesperson said that they would visit the liner in Cairns upon its return.

Chronology of Occurrences

The liner initially left the Australian port on 24 October, and was merely two days into the voyage at the moment of the elderly woman's death. The tropical location was the first stop on the itinerary.

Guests on board - who usually pay large sums of money to join the voyage - were taken there for a daily excursion with the option of trekking or snorkelling.

Relatives Statement

The child of the victim said that her relatives was "shocked and grieved that the vessel left Lizard Island after an organised tour without my mother".

Through her comments, she portrayed her mum as an "vigorous octogenarian" who was a affiliate of a walking club.

"From the little information we have been provided, it appears that there was a breakdown of attention and ordinary reasoning," she mentioned.

She added that she wished the investigation would be able to identify what "the operator should have undertaken that might have saved Her life".

"Based on information from the police that it was a exceptionally warm afternoon, and she took sick on the uphill trek," she stated.

"She was asked her to go back, unescorted. Then the vessel departed, reportedly without conducting a headcount.

"During some point in that chain of events, or shortly after, she died, without company."

Company Response

Via official communication, the Chief Executive verified that the operator was "collaborating extensively with authorities to aid their inquiry".

He stated that the organization was "extremely apologetic that this has happened" and had extended its complete assistance to the family.

Shipping Sector Practices

The vessel caters for up to a hundred twenty passengers with forty-six crew, according to corporate details. It was specifically designed to enter distant locations of the Australian coast and is fitted with "auxiliary vessels" - small boats used to take individuals on shore trips.

Events such as this are uncommon, and passenger vessels have procedures to record which passengers are boarding or leaving, according to maritime specialists.

"Going ashore secretly or [back] aboard just isn't an choice," one expert remarked.

Vessel operators take these procedures extremely carefully and have "clever tech in place to avoid such occurrences from happening," the authority further stated.

"This is presumably a surprising - and tragic - one-off."