The Telegraph newspaper in the U.K. and Travel Pulse report that a cruise passenger on Cunard Line’s Queen Elizabeth died while attempting to board the cruise ship from a tender.

The accident occurred while the cruise ship was in the port city of Sihanoukville in Cambodia. 

There are no details of the accident in either publication. 

The Telegraph contains the cruise line’s official statement: "We can confirm that a passenger died  Queen Elizabethearlier today following an accident whilst boarding Queen Elizabeth from a tender. Two of our crew members reacted very quickly and jumped in to rescue her. She was then taken to the medical centre but despite our very best efforts, she died."

It is possible that the passenger was being assisted from the tender to the cruise ship and the two vessels came apart due to rough weather and the passenger fell into the water, a situation we see from time to time. There could also have been a ramp or other device providing a means to transfer the passenger from the tender to the cruise ship which broke or malfunctioned.

In contrast to the duty of "reasonable care" or ordinary care typically owed by the cruise operator to the passenger, a cruise line has a duty of "high care" when a vessel transfer is taking place. 

 

Photo Credit: 663highland via Wikipedia / Creative commons 3.0