Suzanne Rees, an 80-year-old grandmother from Sydney, Australia, was accidentally left stranded on Lizard Island, which is on the Great Barrier Reef, and was found dead
The grief-stricken daughter of a woman who was found dead on a tropical island after a cruise ship left without her has shared her anguish.
Suzanne Rees, 80, was discovered dead on Lizard Island where she and other passengers had disembarked the Coral Adventurer amid a 60-day luxury cruise. The vessel somehow departed for its next stop without Ms Rees, a solo traveller, and, after a search several hours later, the pensioner was found dead in remote terrain.
It is understood she had gone for a hike on the resort island, during which she fell and suffered serious injuries on Saturday. A probe is now underway to investigate 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.
Ms Rees’ daughter, Katherine Rees, has backed the investigation, accusing the cruise company Coral Expeditions of a “failure of care and common sense”. Speaking from her home in Sydney, Australia, Katherine said: “We are shocked and saddened that the Coral Adventurer left Lizard Island after an organised excursion without my mum.
“From the little we have been told, it seems that there was a failure of care and common sense. We understand from the police that it was a very hot day, and Mum felt ill on the hill climb. 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, mum died, alone.”
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Katherine said she hopes a coroner’s inquiry will “find out what the company should have done that might have saved mum’s life.” She paid tribute to the woman who was only reported missing by the team on the ship when she failed to show for dinner in one of the restaurants.
The crew of a search helicopter spotted Ms Rees’ body the next day about 50 meters (55 yards) off the hiking trail to the lookout, The Australian newspaper reported. She appeared to have fallen from a cliff or slope, the newspaper said.
Police said in a statement a coroner would investigate the “non-suspicious death.” The coroner’s court also confirmed the death had been referred for investigation. Coral Expeditions chief executive Mark Fifield said his company was fully cooperating with official investigations into the death. He said it would be inappropriate to comment while those investigations were underway.
The cruise ship firm’s stateent reads: “We have expressed our heartfelt condolences to the Rees family and remain deeply sorry that this has occurred. We continue to provide our full support to the Rees family through this difficult time.”
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority, a safety regulator, is investigating why Rees may not have been accounted for when passengers were boarding at Lizard Island. The tragedy is also being investigated by a workplace safety watchdog.