A coroner has determined that a Canadian backpacker died by drowning following a dingo attack on a well-known Australian beach.
The body of 19-year-old Piper James was discovered on the morning of January 19 on K’Gari (formerly Fraser Island), off the coast of Queensland, surrounded by approximately ten dingoes.
According to the state’s coroners court on Friday, “Piper died as a result of drowning in the setting of multiple injuries, due to, or as a consequence of a dingo attack.” Investigations into her death are ongoing.
Authorities euthanized at least six of the roughly ten dingoes found near James’s body. K’Gari is home to about 200 dingoes, which are protected under law as a native species.
Previous inquiries revealed “extensive post-mortem dingo bite marks” and suggested it was “not likely” that any pre-mortem bites caused “immediate death.”
In the weeks leading up to her death, the teenager had been working at a local hostel and had informed friends of her plans to go for an early morning swim.
In the days following the incident, James’s parents told media outlets that their daughter had long dreamed of traveling and had saved up for her trip after graduating from high school.
Angela and Todd James described Piper as a “kind spirit” who possessed an “infectious laugh.”
Her mother told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that Piper loved to “start her day in the ocean watching the sun come up, because she just felt so free there.”
The last known fatal dingo attack on the island occurred in 2001 when a nine-year-old boy was killed by a dingo after falling near a campsite, according to the ABC.
In 2023, a woman jogging on a K’Gari beach was attacked by dingoes and forced to seek refuge in the ocean. According to reports from the time, two witnesses rescued her from the water and transported her to safety in their vehicle.
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