The British tourist who passed away while on a trip to Saxon Reef last Tuesday was not snorkelling at the time of his death.

While some in the tourism industry believe the association between the passing away of a visitor and the activity they undertake on the reef is often misrepresented in the media, Col McKenzie spokesperson for Dive Queensland, is not concerned.

"I don't think it affects us (the reef tour industry) much at all. I think most people accept that when you carry 2 million people a year in the industry you're going to have some that will turn their toes up, it's inevitable," Mr McKenzie said.

"In this case it came over as a snorkelling and diving death, but I can tell you categorically that he was not snorkelling at the time he was standing talking to the skipper after he'd got out of the water, dried himself, and changed his clothes."

While a number of media reports described Saxon Reef as being 50km from Port Douglas, The Newsport has been made aware that no Port Douglas reef tour operators visit Saxon Reef. 

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