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An extensive 60-day journey around Australia was terminated following the death of an elderly woman who was stranded by the cruise liner on a isolated coastal location.

The passenger had been hiking on the remote island with fellow passengers from the vessel, but separated from the excursion for a break. The liner departed without her and came back later that day after the crew realised the lady was not present.

A large-scale rescue mission discovered her remains the next day.

Officials are looking into the incident, together with police and the state coroner.

Chief Executive of the shipping company stated that passengers and personnel on the vessel were told that the continuation of the journey had been cancelled due to the "sad loss and prior mechanical issues".

In a statement, he added that passengers would be provided a complete reimbursement, and said the organization was working "to organize the travel back of the individuals via private aircraft".

Authorities also published an updated statement, and said they had "delivered a notice to the Commander" banning any additional guests from boarding the ship.

The official said that they would inspect the ship in the port city upon its coming back.

Sequence of Incidents

The vessel initially left Cairns on October 24th, and was only 48 hours into the voyage at the moment of the elderly woman's passing. The tropical location was the first stop on the journey.

Passengers on board - who typically pay substantial amounts of money to join the expedition - were ferried there for a day trip with the possibility of hiking or underwater exploration.

Family Statement

The daughter of the elderly passenger said that her family was "surprised and grieved that the liner left the island after an organised tour without my mum".

In her statement, she characterized her mother as an "energetic 80-year-old" who was a participant of a walking group.

"From the little facts we have been provided, it appears that there was a lapse of attention and ordinary reasoning," she stated.

She added that she desired the investigation would be able to determine what "the organization should have undertaken that might have protected Mum's being".

"Based on information from the investigators that it was a exceptionally warm day, and mum became unwell on the mountain ascent," she explained.

"She was asked her to return, alone. Then the ship sailed away, apparently without conducting a headcount.

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

Organization Response

Through an announcement, the CEO confirmed that the operator was "collaborating extensively with authorities to aid their examination".

He stated that the firm was "deeply sorry that this has transpired" and had offered its full support to the relatives.

Shipping Sector Practices

The ship caters for up to 120 passengers with nearly fifty staff, according to official data. It was specifically designed to enter remote regions of the Australian coast and is equipped with "tenders" - minor craft used to take travelers on day excursions.

Incidents such as this are uncommon, and cruise ships have protocols to record which individuals are boarding or disembarking, according to maritime specialists.

"Sneaking ashore or [back] onboard simply isn't an possibility," an authority stated.

Vessel operators consider these procedures extremely carefully and have "clever tech in place to stop such incidents from happening," the specialist continued.

"This seems to be presumably a shocking - and unfortunate - single occurrence."