Cruise ship operator P&O has denied there was a gastro outbreak on board one of its ships following the death of an elderly woman on board.
Sydney woman Margaret Carlson, 79, died on the Pacific Jewel on Saturday as the ship docked off Cairns during a 10-day Great Barrier Reef cruise.
Her family has claimed there was an outbreak of gastroenteritis on board.
"My first priority was to let people know, because I thought you would not want to send your mother or grandmother on that [ship]," Mrs Carlson's daugther Vanessa D'Sousa told Fairfax Media.
"We'd like some answers. Is there really some issue with hygiene, or is there something going wrong?"
But a P&O spokesperson denied there had been a gastro outbreak on board the ship.
"Reports by one media outlet that there had been a gastro outbreak on the ship are incorrect," they said in a statement.
P&O would not comment further on the cause of Ms Carlson's death due to privacy issues.
Queensland police are preparing a report for the coroner but say the woman's death is not suspicious.
