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An Australian cruise ship has run aground with 120 passengers on board on its first trip since a passenger died after being left behind on a remote island.
The Coral Adventurer hit a reef off the coast of Papua New Guinea early on Saturday morning, according to reports.
The ship’s operator, Coral Expeditions, said no one was hurt in the incident.
“Coral Adventurer had a grounding incident in coastal Papua New Guinea yesterday. All passengers and crew are safe,” a spokesperson told The Guardian.
“An initial inspection indicates no damage to the vessel. The incident has been reported to authorities and will undergo further official inspections to the hull and marine environment as a standard procedure.”
Passengers on board are reportedly staying on Papua New Guinea while a team attempts to re-float the ship and inspect the hull.
The Coral Adventurer is currently under investigation following the death of an elderly passenger who was left behind on a remote island.
Suzanne Rees, 80, was hiking on Lizard Island with other passengers from the Coral Adventurer when she started feeling unwell and became separated from the group.
Believing she had made her way back to the ship alone, her fellow hikers returned to the vessel and it left the island without her.
The crew realised she was missing and returned to the island to look for her but a day later, on 25 October, Rees was found dead.
Australian authorities have launched an investigation into the woman’s death.
Under existing regulations by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), captains or masters of commercial passenger vessels are required to maintain systems ensuring every passenger is accounted for at any given time.
The woman’s daughter, Katherine Rees, said earlier that the family was “shocked and saddened that the Coral Adventurer left Lizard Island after an organised excursion without my mum, Suzanne.”
“From the little we have been told, it seems that there was a failure of care and common sense,” she told The Australian.
“I hope that the coronial inquiry will find out what the company should have done that might have saved Mum’s life,” the daughter said.
The CEO of Coral Expeditions, Mark Fifield, said that the company offered its full support to the Rees family and cancelled the remainder of the voyage.
The Independent has contacted Coral Expeditions for a comment.
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