Posted on 10/30/2025 10:58:29 AM PDT by Red Badger
Missing a boarding time for a cruise ship could end up fatal.
An 80-year-old Australian woman was discovered dead on a remote island after she was left behind by the cruise ship she was traveling on.
The woman was hiking on Lizard Island with a group of other passengers, but was separated from the group after she decided to take some time to rest.
The Coral Adventurer cruise ship ended up leaving the woman on the island, but returned several hours later to find her after she was discovered not to be on board.
On Sunday, she was discovered dead.
Per BBC:
An 80-year-old Australian woman has been found dead on a Great Barrier Reef island after being left behind by the cruise ship she was travelling on.
The woman had been hiking on Lizard Island, 250km (155 miles) north of Cairns, with fellow passengers from the Coral Adventurer cruise ship on Saturday but is believed to have broken off from the group to have a rest.
The ship left the island around sunset but returned several hours later after the crew realised the woman was missing. A major search operation found her body on Sunday morning. No details have been released.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) said it was investigating and would meet the ship’s crew later this week. It is understood the woman, who has not been named, was on the first stop of a 60-day cruise around Australia, with tickets costing in the tens of thousands of dollars for the journey.
The woman has since been identified as Suzanne Rees.
Suzanne’s daughter Katherine Rees revealed the day her mother was hiking was very hot and her mother rested after unfeeling during the hike.
Katherine Rees, in a statement to the press, stated the cruise ship’s “failure of care and common sense” led to her mother’s death.
She added, “She was asked to head down, unescorted. Then the ship left, apparently without doing a passenger count. At some stage in that sequence, or shortly after, Mom died, alone.”
Cruising expert Adrian Tassone shared that cruise ships usually know who is on and off board. The case of Rees being unaccounted for appears to be a tragic blunder.
An 80 year old probably shouldn’t be hiking on Lizard Island.
She probably died before the ship left. She was 80 years old and it was a very hot day. When she sat down to rest she was sitting down to die.
therefore....climate change
What did she die of?
...the woman, who has not been named...has since been identified as Suzanne Rees.
Whatever...
She was on the island alone for a couple hours because she did not return to ship when she was supposed to because she "decided to take rest."
This is not the cruise line's fault. Its sad that it happened but they did what they were supposed to do. Its not their job to round up every single person before they leave a location.
You are probably correct.
Lizard is visited often by dive boats and tours.
Another group would have been there in 30 min.
I also like to rest after unfeeling.
Don’t cruise ships do some kind of head count?
>> I also like to rest after unfeeling.
Me too but only when it’s hot. When I’m cold and unfeeling, that’s when I do my best work! 😆
Yes, that’s when they discovered the passenger missing.
I would think that ship excursions should do that as well...........
I don’t think I’ve ever ‘unfeeled’..............
>> Katherine Rees... stated the cruise ship’s “failure of care and common sense” led to her mother’s death.
Appears Mom had a few common sense issues of her own.
Always have a hiking “buddy”.
It’s a sad story, but you get back to a cruise ship late and they’ll leave you behind, without much hesitation. I don’t know about Lizard Island, but most ports will impose a fine well into five figures if a ship leaves port late. Lizard Island is an Aussie Island and this is an Aussie cruise ship, so I don’t know if such a fine would apply.
The only exception is to take a co-sponsored shore excursion from the boat. That way, the boat will know that an entire busload of pax are stuck in traffic, or whatever the reason is. They’ll wait. Otherwise, you can try to retrieve your passport from local port management and you can, if you are able, catch up to the ship via your own means and rejoin your cruise.
The “negligence and lack of common sense” of her, her companions, and the cruise ship staff was a combination of several negligent factors.
Dang 😮
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