The crew of the Coral Adventurer cruise ship was initially unaware the woman had not reboarded after she joined a hiking trip on Lizard Island. Photo: Facebook.
The prime authority investigating the death of an 80-year-old Australian woman on Lizard Island has confirmed it will speak with the crew of the cruise ship at the centre of the tragedy later this week.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said it was currently working with other agencies and would follow up with those on board when the vessel arrived in Darwin.
The woman, who has not been named, was reported missing hours after the Coral Adventurer cruise ship visited the island on Saturday. A search launched late Saturday night recovered her body on Sunday.
The woman had been on a group hiking tour of the island but did not return to the ship. Unaware the woman had not reboarded, the ship departed the area in the early evening.
Emergency services, including Nautilus Aviation helicopters, were called just before midnight when the crew realised the woman was not on board.
Police said the death was being treated as “sudden and non-suspicious”.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
The Coral Adventurer forms part of the Coral Expeditions fleet.
According to its website, the Coral Adventurer was launched in April 2019 as a tropical expedition ship purpose-designed to access remote wilderness shores in Australia and internationally often inaccessible to large cruise vessels.
The ship carries a maximum of 120 passengers.
