Western Australian police are investigating the death of a man after he fell from a cruise ship bound for Noumea.
At least one New Zealander was on the Rhapsody of the Seas cruise when the man died, but did not know him or see him go overboard.
The man, who lived in Western Australia, fell overboard about 550km east of Brisbane about 2am on Saturday. A witness alerted the crew, who threw life rings and marker smoke into the water.
The ship was turned around and rescue boats were launched. The man's body was found and recovered about seven hours later, after an intensive search assisted by a Queensland government plane and another ship, the Pacific Pearl, which was in the vicinity. It is understood the ship, owned by US-based cruise liner Royal Caribbean International, was to return to Sydney.
An Australian Maritime Safety Authority referred the Herald to the New South Wales police, who confirmed the dead man hailed from Western Australia but could not comment further.
