Suzanne Rees, from New South Wales, fell ill during an organised hill climb on Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia, and was later declared dead
An elderly gran was found dead on a remote island after she was left behind by a cruise ship.
Suzanne Rees, 80, was only reported missing when she failed to arrive for dinner, some five hours after she vanished on Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia. The solo tourist had been on an organised hike there but fell ill and, while she lay stricken, the cruise ship departed for its next stop.
Ms Rees’s family has blasted the “failure of care and common sense” by Coral Expeditions, owned by National Roads and Motorists’ Association (NRMA) in Australia, who operates the 60-day cruise.
It was the first stop on the Coral Adventurer’s long circumnavigation of Australia, a holiday which costs a huge £40,000 per person. A multi-agency investigation will probe how and why Ms Rees did not make it onto the ship again, including into allegations a passenger count was not conducted before the vessel left.
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Ms Rees’ body was found 50metres off the hiking trail that leads to Lizard Island’s highest summit, Cook’s Look, on Sunday. The Coral Adventurer had only left Cairns for the trip on Friday afternoon.
The ship had anchored off Lizard Island on Saturday, where passengers could take a smaller boat to hike and snorkel on the resort island, 90km (55miles) northeast of Cooktown.
It left on Sunday at around 1pm and, once Ms Rees was reported missing, a helicopter led an aerial search above Lizard Island. The 112–passenger ship allegedly returned to shore and it is thought crew members assisted with the search.
But Coral Expeditions’ chief executive Mark Fifield confirmed the death to the press today. He said: “The crew notified authorities that a woman was missing, and a search and rescue operation was launched on land and sea. Following the operation, Coral Expeditions was notified by Queensland Police that the woman had been found deceased on Lizard Island.
“While investigations into the incident are continuing, we are deeply sorry that this has occurred and are offering our full support to the woman’s family.
“The Coral team has been in contact with the woman’s family, and we will continue to offer support to them through this difficult process.
“We are working closely with Queensland Police and other authorities to support their investigation. We are unable to comment further while this process is underway.”
Police are also assisting with the investigation, but said the death was being treated as “sudden and non-suspicious”. In a statement, Tourism Tropical North Queensland said it extended sympathies to the woman’s family and “as there is an active investigation we are awaiting further details”. A report will be prepared for the coroner.