The cruise ship stopped in Chania,Crete,after the emergency (Picture: Getty Images)

A British holidaymaker has died on board a cruise ship near Crete after falling unresponsive.

The 79-year-old,who has not been named,died on the vessel near the Port of Souda on the Greek holiday island.

The ship was sailing in the Mediterranean when it docked in Crete.

The passenger was found unconscious on the ship’s deck by other tourists,according to Greek ERT News.

He was given first aid,but he was declared dead after being taken to a local hospital.

Port officials in Chania are carrying out a preliminary investigation.

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.A Foreign Office spokesperson told Metro: ‘We are supporting the family of a British man who died in Greece and are in contact with the local authorities.’Another British passenger died earlier this month on a cruise ship near Corfu.The 67-year-old was sailing on a vessel flying the Maltese flag.Crete,the biggest Greek island,welcomes hundreds of cruise ships every year,and it has several ports that can handle large vessels.Heraklion is the busiest port,seeing over 300,000 passengers each year,followed by Souda Port in Chania.Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at . Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.For more stories like this,check our news page.Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.