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
A grandmother has tragically been found dead on a remote island after she was left behind by a cruise ship while on holiday.
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 to its next location. It was the first stop on the Coral Adventurer’s long circumnavigation of Australia, a holiday which costs a staggering £40,000 per person.
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.
A multi-agency investigation will probe how and why the Australian native, who is being remembered as a keen bushwalker and gardener following her death, was allegedly abandonded.
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Many unanswered questions remain around her death, including why it took five hours for crew onboard to notice she was missing.
What happened to Suzanne?
Speaking out on her mothr’s heartbreaking death, Katherine Rees said her mum fell ill during an organised hill climb on Lizard Island. However, details of her condition remain unknown.
Ms Rees’ body was found 50 metres 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.
Popular among divers, snorkelers, and hikers, Lizard Island is one of the Great Barrier Reef’s most secluded tourist destinations.
Cook’s Look, the island’s highest point, traces the path of British explorer Captain James Cook, who is believed to have been the first European to climb the mountain in 1770 after his ship, the Endeavour, struck a reef.
“It covers four kilometres and at times is very steep so we recommend medium to high fitness and agility to safely undertake this hike,” the Lizard Island website states.
“Due to the time it takes to hike and the heat of the day, it is recommended that you hike early in the morning. Those that have done this hike say it is challenging but incredibly rewarding.”
Why was she left alone?
After falling ill, Suzanne was reportedly asked to travel back down the mountain, unescorted.
“Then the ship left, apparently without doing a passenger count. At some stage in that sequence, or shortly after, Mum died, alone,” Katherine told The Australian.
She said her family was “shocked and saddened” that their grandmother had allegedly been abandoned due to a “failure of care and common sense”.
Why was she not accounted for?
Ms Rees was only reported missing when she failed to arrive for dinner, some five hours after she vanished.
Yachtie Traci Ayris and her partner Matthew, who were aboard SV Vellamo anchored near Lizard Island, were listening to emergency radio transmissions sent from the Coral Expeditions vessel.
“They did headcounts for snorkelers (which we heard) but not for other guests on the island it would seem,” Ms Ayris told the Cairns Post.
“The last people came down from the track and got into tender then the (ship) left very soon after that.
“There was not a lot of time between when the last passengers left the beach to when they up anchored. We even commented, ‘Wow they left fast’.”
The Mirror has contacted Coral Expeditions for comment.