Wednesday 28 September 2022 05:59 PM Another Australian tourist left at sea while snorkelling with Captain Cook ... trends now
An Australian woman has revealed how her husband was left behind at sea during a snorkelling excursion in Fiji - and was only saved by a chance encounter with a fishing boat.
Barry Morris, 75, spent 30 terrifying minutes floating in the ocean off privately owned Fijian island Nanuya Levu - where the hit Brooke Shields film The Blue Lagoon was filmed - in May after a charter boat left him behind.
His wife, Bev, was stunned when other tourists who had gone out on the boat arrived back at shore and Barry was nowhere to be seen.
Unknown to her, her elderly husband was shivering in the ocean with a broken snorkel mask - and was thankfully saved by a fisherman who just happened to be sailing by.
Mrs Morris contacted the company responsible, Captain Cook Cruises Fiji, following their week-long voyage.
She was assured that procedures would be improved and headcounts introduced - so the couple were shocked to read that a second Australian family recently survived a similar ordeal.
Barry Morris (pictured with wife Bev in Fiji) had a terrifying ordeal during a week-long cruise to Fiji
Barry Morris (pictured right) was looking forward to his snorkelling excursion, only to be left behind by the charter boat
Justine Clark and her sons Felix, 18, and Max, 20, were stranded in the middle of the ocean after their charter boat left them behind during a holiday in Fiji in August.
The family and their divemaster were forced to start swimming towards the nearest island 20km away before being rescued by a garbage collector boat.
Mrs Morris was upset to read about the encounter 'after the cruise company promised me it would never happen again'.
'How can a tender boat miss four people, including the divemaster?'
'Someone is going to drown out there. The cruise company needs to step up procedures before they lose someone.
'It's not good enough. This shouldn't have happened twice.'
Details about Barry Morris' harrowing ordeal in May emerged after he and his wife read about a similar ordeal recently endured by Justine Clark and her sons (pictured)
For Mr and Mrs Morris, it was the couple's first holiday to the island nation in three years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
On May 12, they were on the second last day of their Captain Cook Cruises Fiji voyage when guests chose between a beach excursion or snorkelling for their morning activity.
Mrs Morris opted to stay on the beach while her husband, an experienced snorkeller, went out on the boat.
'When the boat came back, a few guests who snorkelled asked if I'd seen Barry as he wasn't on the boat with them,' Ms Morris recalled.
'We then spotted a local fishing boat, which brought him back to the ship.
'He lost a sapphire ring he was wearing because his hands were so cold from the time he spent in the water.'
Mrs Morris claimed the charter boat didn't attempt to look for her husband and shudders at the thought of what could have happened had local fisherman not spotted and rescued him.
'At 75 years old, I don’t know if he could have kept swimming to a nearby island,' Ms Morris said.
'He's not a strong swimmer and his snorkel mask also broke.
'He snorkelled with the belief that crew would be accountable for passenger safety.'
Local fishermen (pictured) spotted Barry abandoned at sea and returned him to the cruise ship
She contacted Captain Cook Cruises Fiji afterwards, with the company apologising and refunding part of the cost of Mr Morris' cruise.
But, in emails obtained by Daily Mail Australia, the company also claimed to Mrs Morris that her husband had swum away from the group and missed boarding the boat.
'We are sorry that this mishap occurred and please be assured we have since thoroughly worked through the headcount procedures with the crew,' the company's general manager wrote.
The couple, who have holidayed in Fiji at least once a year for the last two decades will return in November but have no plans to book with the cruise company in the future.
When Daily Mail Australia put detailed questions to the company, Captain Cook Cruises Fiji did not specially address the recent snorkelling ordeals.
'For well over 20 years Captain Cook Cruises Fiji’s number one priority has been ensuring the enjoyment, health and welfare of the people that travel and dive with us,' a spokesman said.
'We have been in close contact with the passengers and understand
