The body of missing Australian hiker Lily Hooper has been recovered after authorities mistakenly reported that the 18-year-old had been found alive.
Hooper was discovered dead in bushland in New South Wales’ Southern Highlands on Thursday, only minutes after reports circulated that she had survived the eight-day search.
NSW Premier Chris Minns and Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon apologised to Hooper’s family on Friday over the communication error.
Hooper, an experienced hiker, was reported missing last week, prompting a large-scale search involving around 1,000 people.
NSW Police said her body was airlifted from Nattai National Park, south-west of Sydney.
A post-mortem examination will be carried out in the coming days to formally confirm her identity and determine the cause of death, police said.
The confusion began when Minns told a state parliamentary hearing on Thursday that search teams had found Hooper alive with half a bottle of water.
About 30 minutes later, he corrected the statement, confirming that Hooper’s body had been found and that she was deceased.
Several Australian media organisations had already published reports saying the teenager had been found alive before quickly retracting or correcting them.
The error also gave Hooper’s parents a brief period of hope before they learned that their daughter had died.
Minns said on Friday that he planned to speak directly with the family and personally apologise.
“The government, myself – we’re profoundly sorry,” he said.
NSW State Emergency Services Commissioner Mike Wassing explained that coded terms are often used during major search operations.
The codes are designed to prevent sensitive information from being shared over radio communications, particularly when searches involve emergency personnel, police, relatives, friends and community volunteers.
Wassing said some codes can relate to items such as bottles of water, although he did not confirm whether that was the cause of Thursday’s mistake.
Police Commissioner Lanyon said communication can become difficult during large-scale searches in remote locations.
“Tragically, her condition was miscommunicated, and for that I apologise,” he said.
He added that police would review their communication policies and procedures to ensure similar mistakes are avoided in future search operations.