A cruise ship has run aground in Papua New Guinea (PNG) on its first voyage since the death of an elderly passenger in late October.
The Coral Adventurer is currently being investigated over the death of Suzanne Rees, 80, who died on a remote Australian island after being abandoned by the ship.
On Saturday, the ship suffered a “grounding incident” off PNG’s east coast, about 30km from the town of Lae, a spokesperson for the ship said.
All passengers and crew on board the cruise ship were declared safe and initial inspections revealed no damage to the hull. Further inspections will take place on Sunday.
A spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) told the BBC in a statement that it had not received a distress call from the Coral Adventurer.
He added that he was monitoring the situation and would support the PNG authorities if necessary.
No decision has been made regarding the ongoing 12-day trip, which was scheduled to end on December 30.
There were 80 passengers and 43 crew members on board the ship at the time of the incident.
The Coral Adventurer is currently the subject of a joint investigation by Amsa and Queensland Police. Ms Rees was found dead on Lizard Island on October 26.
She had hiked the island with other passengers, but separated from the group to rest.
The ship left without her and returned several hours later after the crew realized the woman was missing.
A major search operation made it possible to find his body the next day.
The ship was just two days into a 60-day voyage at the time of Ms Rees’ death. The remainder of the cruise was canceled and full refunds were offered to all passengers.
Coral Expeditions CEO Mark Fifield said the company was “deeply sorry that this had happened” and had offered its full support to the Rees family.
Mr Fifield added the cruise line was “working closely with Queensland Police and other authorities to support their investigation”.
Amsa was unable to comment on the status of the investigation and told the BBC that it “does not make a practice of making the results of its investigations public”.
