A Canadian backpacker drowned after being attacked by dingoes at a popular Australian beach, a coroner has found.
The body of Piper James, 19, was found in the early hours of January 19, surrounded by a dozen dingoes, on K’Gari (formerly known as Fraser Island), off the east coast of Queensland.
“Piper died as a result of drowning, multiple injuries, or as a result of a dingo attack,” the state coroners court heard Friday as the inquest into her death was underway.
At least six of the ten dingoes found around James’ body were later euthanized. Around 200 dingoes live on K’Gari and are protected as a native species by law.
Previous investigations had found “numerous post-mortem dingo bite marks” and that it was “unlikely” that pre-mortem dingo bites caused “immediate death”.
The teenager had been working at a backpacker hostel in the weeks before her death and had told friends she was going for an early morning swim.
In the days following her death, James’ parents told local media that their daughter had previously dreamed of traveling and had saved for her trip after graduating from high school.
Angela and Todd James described Piper as a “kind spirit” with an “infectious laugh.”
Her mother told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that Piper liked to “start her day in the ocean watching the sun come up, because she felt so free there”.
The last known fatal attack by a dingo on the island was in 2001, when a nine-year-old boy was killed by a dingo after tripping and falling near a campsite, according to the ABC.
In 2023, a woman jogging on a beach in K’Gari was attacked by dingoes, forcing her to run into the ocean. Two witnesses saw her, pulled her out of the water and put her in the back of their vehicle before driving her to safety, according to local reports at the time.