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Eight-day search for missing teenager in Australian national park ends with discovery of body

A massive search operation in Nattai National Park ended after a volunteer located a body believed to be 18-year-old Lily Hooper.

The short version

  • An eight-day search involving roughly 1,000 people in Nattai National Park concluded when a volunteer located a woman's body in dense bushland.
  • Police believe the body is that of 18-year-old Lily Hooper, who went missing on Aug. 12 after departing for a hike.
  • A brief miscommunication initially led Hooper's family to believe she was found alive before police corrected the information minutes later.
  • Authorities have not yet established a cause of death and are preparing a report for the coroner.

Key facts

  • Eighteen-year-old Lily Hooper went missing on Aug. 12 after embarking on a hike in Nattai National Park, located southwest of Sydney.[Fox News]
  • A volunteer searcher discovered a body believed to be Hooper's in dense bushland following an eight-day search involving around 1,000 people.[Fox News]
  • Hooper's vehicle was found at the Bonnum Pic trailhead on the night she was reported missing.[Fox News]
  • New South Wales Police Assistant Commissioner Joseph Cassar stated that initial search updates incorrectly informed the family that she was alive, but police corrected the account within 8 to 10 minutes.[Fox News]
  • Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed condolences, and the Australian Parliament held a moment of silence following the news.[Fox News]

What remains uncertain

  • Authorities have not yet determined or released the formal cause of death, pending formal identification and a report for the coroner.[Fox News]

Sources