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An Australian cruise ship remains stuck on a reef off Papua New Guinea despite efforts to free it, with passengers set to be flown home early.
The Coral Adventurer, which ran aground on Saturday morning, was already under investigation as a result of an unrelated incident in October, in which a passenger died after being allegedly left behind on an island. It was on its first voyage since the passenger’s death when it ran aground.
The vessel, which had been carrying 80 passengers and 44 crew when it ran aground, remained on reef off the coast of Papua New Guinea, about 30km from PNG’s second-largest city, Lae, on Monday.
No one was injured in the accident and all passengers were later taken to PNG.
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A tug was dispatched to the area on Sunday to help pull the ship off the reef. The Guardian understands that efforts were made to free it but were unsuccessful.
A spokesperson for the vessel’s operator, Coral Expeditions, said on Monday that the company had decided to cancel the voyage.
“Acknowledging that we have not been able to deliver the exceptional experience expected by our guests on this occasion, Coral Expeditions has decided to end the tour,” the spokesperson said.
“All passengers will be flown out on a charter flight.”
The spokesperson said the company “continues to work with local authorities to refloat the Coral Adventurer”.
“To date, initial inspections indicate no damage to the vessel, with further comprehensive inspections of the hull and marine environment to be conducted as standard procedure once the vessel is refloated.
“There have been no injuries to any passengers or crew members.”
Passengers are expected to be flown to Cairns, where the ship departed on its voyage on 18 December, as early as Tuesday.
In a statement released over the weekend, the PNG’s National Maritime Safety Authority said it was first alerted to the ship running aground on Saturday, at about 6.57am local time.
“At the time of grounding, the vessel sat on a coral reef with a 6-degree least to the port side,” it said.
It said no damage appeared to have occurred and that a tug boat would attempt to pull the ship from the reef.
“Should the refloat attempt be unsuccessful, the vessel’s operating company is already engaging in discussions with authorities for the next course of action.”
October death
The Coral Adventurer is currently part of a separate and unrelated investigation after the death of passenger Suzanne Rees in October.
The 80-year-old from Sydney was allegedly left behind by the vessel on Lizard Island during an excursion.
The crew reportedly realised she was not on board when she did not show up for dinner. Her body was found on the island on Sunday 26 October, after a land and sea search.
The cruise company ended that tour early with all passengers flown home from the Torres Strait islands.
