A 19-year-old girl was found dead surrounded by a pack of wild dogs whilst travelling in Australia. Canadian teenager Piper James’ body was discovered on the Australian island of K’gari, surrounded by a pack of dingoes, on Monday, January 19.
The parents of the teen have shared that they are “shattered” by the loss of their daughter, in a tribute to the young woman.
When she turned 18, Piper’s parents in Canada recalled that she had said: “I’m 18, and you can’t stop me,” to her father before embarking on her backpacking journey to the other side of the world. For the biggest stories in Wales first, sign up to our daily newsletter here
She was last seen at around 5am on Monday morning, January 19, as she set off for an early-morning swim at the beach. Piper was discovered an hour later by two men who had been driving past but noticed a pack of dingoes encircling an object on the shore.
Piper was found lying on the white, heritage-listed sands of 75 Mile Beach, surrounded by the pack of native wild dogs on a tropical island in Australia’s northern state of Queensland, reports the Mirror.
Thousands of miles away from home, the young woman whom her parents knew as being full of enthusiasm for life and a spirit of adventure, had her life tragically cut short in an incident that has left police baffled.
A post-mortem examination into her death commenced on Wednesday, January 21, with a coroner assigned to try to figure out the mystery surrounding her death.
Dingoes were reportedly surrounding the woman when she was found (file)(Image: Josh Feek via Getty Images)
The investigation will seek to establish whether she drowned in the powerful ocean currents that surround K’gari, with Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology recording that winds in the area had reached 25 knots on the day she died.
Alternatively, it’s possible James was attacked by the pack of dingoes found near her remains. These wild animals inhabit the island and have been involved in several dangerous encounters with humans recently.
Her parents, located across the Pacific Ocean, are reportedly overwhelmed with grief.
Piper’s father, Todd James, took to social media to pay tribute to his daughter, fondly remembering her “infectious laugh and her kind spirit”.
“Our hearts are shattered as we share the tragic loss of our beautiful daughter, Piper,” he said. “I admired her strength and determination to go after her dreams.”
He continued: “So many are going to miss you, my precious little baby girl. Maybe gone, but how can we ever forget you?”.
In an interview with media in the Canadian province of British Columbia, her mother, Angela James, revealed that her daughter had been “having the trip of her life.”
“She was very adventurous. She loved motocross. She loved camping, she loved swimming, and she loved surfing. She wanted to learn to surf,” she shared.
Lake McKenzie on K’gari, a tropical island in Australia(Image: )
She last spoke to her daughter on the phone on Saturday morning, during which Piper expressed her love for her parents and being “thankful for everything they had done”.
Ms James informed the Canadian press that she had been advised by Australian authorities that the postmortem results could take up to a week to be released.
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli expressed his concern to Australia’s national broadcaster, ABC, stating that the teenager’s death was “really troubling”, adding that he was “determined to get to the bottom” of what caused her death .
In a press conference held on Wednesday, he acknowledged: “We’ve got to acknowledge that a young woman, in the prime of her life, has lost her life.
“Nineteen years of age, and doing what she loved, on a trip of a lifetime – and to not go home to her family is really tough”.
Crisafulli indicated that the “next step” would be for an autopsy to be carried out.
A spokesperson for the coroner’s court confirmed to ABC that an investigation into Piper’s death had commenced. The family would be kept informed, but the spokesperson cautioned that the process might not conclude there.
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