Passengers on an Australian cruise ship that ran aground on a reef off Papua New Guinea (PNG) are set to be flown home after crews were unable to refloat the vessel. The Australian-flagged Coral Adventurer became stuck at about 05:25 local time on Saturday, grounding on a reef off the country’s eastern coastline.
Authorities in PNG said everyone on board was safe. The ship was carrying 80 passengers and 44 crew members, and there were no reports of injuries. The passengers had departed from Cairns, in northern Australia, on 18 December for a tour that included calls in several PNG provinces along the north coast.
Refloating Efforts And Safety Assessments
Local officials said the vessel was transiting through Morobe, Madang and Sepik provinces when it encountered strong currents and was pushed onto the reef. Morobe’s police commander, Chief Superintendent Samson Siguyaru, told Australia’s public broadcaster that sea conditions played a role as the ship moved through the area.
PNG’s National Maritime Safety Authority (NMSA) said the ship developed a six-degree list to port, meaning it was leaning to the left. Maritime specialists typically treat a sustained list as a sign that a vessel may be unevenly supported or experiencing imbalance, and it can affect onboard movement and operational decisions even when passengers are not in immediate danger.
Inspectors examined the vessel and the surrounding waters and concluded that the ship had not suffered damage and that there was no environmental pollution or spillage linked to the grounding. Even with those findings, getting a ship off a reef can be complex, often requiring careful timing with tides and currents, as well as coordination between the ship, tug assistance and local authorities.
PNG officials said attempts on Sunday to free the vessel—using the ship’s own engines alongside a tug boat—did not succeed, leaving the Coral Adventurer still grounded while regulators reviewed next steps.
Detention Notice And Route Scrutiny
A detention notice has been issued for the ship, according to Ch Supt Siguyaru, preventing it from leaving the location while authorities complete required checks and processes. In practical terms, the notice means the vessel has been deemed temporarily unseaworthy and must remain in place until investigators and maritime regulators clear it to proceed. Detention orders are commonly used to ensure safety conditions are met and that required documentation, inspections or corrective actions are completed before a vessel is allowed to depart.
Questions have also been raised locally about how the ship approached the reef. Morobe’s provincial governor, Rainbo Paita, told Australian media that the vessel took a route not commonly used by local operators and said the reef is known to be shallow and hazardous.
The incident underscores navigational challenges around reefs in the region, where tidal patterns and currents can change quickly, and where safe passages may depend on local knowledge as well as charts and onboard systems. PNG authorities have not released details of any formal findings, and no cause beyond the reported currents has been confirmed publicly.
Operator Response And Earlier Headline
The ship’s operator, Coral Expeditions, said the voyage would be curtailed and that passengers would be flown back to Australia, according to the Australian public broadcaster. The plan would bring travellers back to Cairns about a day ahead of schedule while the ship remains under detention and further efforts to resolve the grounding continue.
On its website, Coral Expeditions says it has been operating tours to PNG for about 20 years, positioning the region as a long-running destination within its expedition-style itineraries. The company has been contacted for comment on the grounding, the passenger transfer arrangements and the circumstances that led to the ship becoming stuck.The Coral Adventurer was also the subject of earlier media coverage this year after an elderly woman was left behind on a remote island on the Great Barrier Reef. Her body was found the following day, and an investigation into that incident is ongoing.
