Coral Adventurer Stranding Ends: Passengers Airlifted Home After Refloat Fails

Stranded at Sea

The Coral Adventurer’s 14-day Kimberley adventure turned into a logistical scramble last Thursday when the 120-metre expedition vessel ran hard aground on an uncharted sandbank 80 nautical miles north of Broome.

Last-Minute Rescue

With tugboats unable to shift the 5,800-tonne ship and a spring tide proving insufficient, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority ordered a full passenger evacuation. Two charted Dash 8 aircraft touched down on a nearby airstrip, shuttling all 102 guests back to Perth overnight.

‘We were served champagne at sunset one moment and boarding lifeboats the next,’ said Sydney passenger Belinda Carr, 61. ‘The crew stayed calm, but you could see the concern on their faces.’

What Went Wrong

• Early reports suggest outdated electronic charts failed to show a shifting shoal pushed inland by recent cyclone swells.
• The ship’s dynamic-positioning system was offline for scheduled maintenance, leaving officers to navigate manually in fading light.
• An engine cooling intake clogged by silt stalled propulsion, wedging the hull deeper into the sand.

Next Steps

Coral Expeditions has promised a full refund plus a future cruise credit. The vessel will remain anchored while salvage teams lighten its load and wait for the next king tide on Tuesday. Class investigators have opened a formal inquiry; results are expected within six months.