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One extended cruise circling the Australian Coast was terminated days after the tragic passing of an elderly woman who was abandoned by the vessel on a remote tropical isle.

The elderly woman had been trekking on Lizard Island with shipmates from the vessel, but separated from the excursion for a pause. The ship departed without her and returned several hours later after the crew became aware the woman was unaccounted for.

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

Officials are looking into the tragedy, in coordination with police and the medical examiner.

Chief Executive of the cruise operator announced that travelers and personnel on the Coral Adventurer were notified that the continuation of the voyage had been called off due to the "sad loss and earlier technical problems".

In a statement, he mentioned that travelers would be issued a complete reimbursement, and said the company was working "to organize the return journeys of the passengers via chartered flights".

Officials also released an latest statement, and said they had "delivered a directive to the Captain" banning any new passengers from getting on the ship.

The official said that they would visit the vessel in Cairns upon its arrival.

Sequence of Occurrences

The liner originally sailed from the coastal city on October 24th, and was merely two days into the journey at the point of the elderly woman's death. The remote island was the initial destination on the voyage.

Passengers on the vessel - who usually pay large sums of dollars to join the expedition - were taken there for a daily excursion with the option of walking or snorkeling.

Relatives Reaction

The daughter of the deceased woman said that her family was "stunned and saddened that the liner left the location after an organised outing without my mum".

In her statement, she portrayed her parent as an "active 80-year-old" who was a affiliate of a bushwalking group.

"Based on limited facts we have been provided, it seems that there was a breakdown of responsibility and ordinary reasoning," she said.

She added that she wished the examination would be able to determine what "the organization should have performed that might have preserved Her life".

"Based on information from the authorities that it was a very hot afternoon, and mother fell ill on the uphill trek," she revealed.

"They requested her to head down, unescorted. Then the ship left, seemingly without doing a headcount.

"At some stage in that chain of events, or shortly after, she died, by herself."

Operator Position

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

He mentioned that the organization was "deeply sorry that this has transpired" and had offered its complete assistance to the loved ones.

Maritime Business Procedures

The liner serves up to 120 travelers with nearly fifty staff, according to official data. It was specifically designed to access distant regions of Australia's coast and is fitted with "small boats" - compact vessels used to ferry individuals on land visits.

Events of this nature are uncommon, and liners have protocols to track which individuals are getting on or disembarking, according to travel authorities.

"Leaving covertly or [back] onboard really isn't an option," an authority remarked.

Cruise lines consider these processes with great importance and have "advanced technology in place to prevent such incidents from happening," the specialist added.

"This is most likely a surprising - and unfortunate - one-off."