A cruise ship with 120 people on board ran aground on the eastern coast of Papua New Guinea on Saturday, December 27.
The incident occurred in the early morning (local time) of Saturday when Coral Adventurer, a cruise ship operated by Australia-based Coral Expeditions, struck a reef some 30 kilometres from the city of Lae.
A spokesperson for Coral Expeditions said that all passengers and crew are safe and that an initial inspection has shown that the ship did not suffer any damage.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) meanwhile said it is aware that the ship had run aground but clarified that it had not received a distress call from her crew.
According to PNG local media, the ship encountered strong currents while en route to Madang province, causing her to strike the reef.
Coral Adventurer has been at the centre of an AMSA investigation since late October of this year when one of the ship's passengers died after reportedly being left behind on a remote island near the Great Barrier Reef.
According to AMSA, 80-year-old Australian national Suzanne Rees had gone hiking on Lizard Island as part of a group from Coral Adventurer on October 25.
The crew did not realise that Rees was not on board until later that evening after the ship had already departed the island.
Rees' body was only found the following morning during an aerial search of the island. Her remains were recovered hours later.