Minns to Personally Apologise for Saying Lily Hooper Found Alive
Police said a code-word error sent false hope to Lily Hooper’s family before authorities corrected the report and confirmed the 18-year-old was dead.
- On Thursday, searchers recovered the body of 18-year-old hiker Lily Hooper from dense bushland in the Nattai National Park, ending an eight-day search. Officials initially reported she was found alive before confirming her death minutes later.
- Code words intended to protect families during search operations are standard practice for NSW Police and emergency services. A mix-up with these protocols led to the erroneous report that Hooper had been found alive, which authorities later retracted.
- For an eight to 10-minute window, parents Jim and Kirrily Hooper believed their daughter had been found alive. This misinformation reached Premier Chris Minns, who announced the news publicly before police corrected him.
- NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon and Minns issued unreserved apologies for the miscommunication and committed to reviewing protocols. Minns said "that is important going forward, but it won't change what happened over the last 24 hours."
- A multi-agency investigation will examine search protocols, and a coronial inquest into Hooper's death is expected to address how the false information spread. Authorities will also review code word usage in remote search operations.
27 Articles
27 Articles
'She's Alive!': Lily Hooper's Family Celebrated Before Police Revealed Teen Had Died, Sparking Investigation
An Australian family is left devastated following a police mix-up where they originally declared their missing teen was alive, only to retract and confirm her death moments later. A local TV station was covering the story when the family heard the news that the missing teen Lily Hooper was found. She had been missing for eight days after going on a hike in the Nattai National Park. The family was seen hugging each other and smiling. Lily's fathe…
For eight days, family and friends clung to hope. When the news finally came that Lily Hooper had been found, joy erupted. But it lasted only a few minutes: the 18-year-old Australian turned out not to have been saved, but found dead.
Lily Hooper, an 18-year-old Australian hiker who went missing eight days ago, has been found dead. Authorities initially mistakenly reported that she was alive.
Lily Hooper, 18, disappeared while hiking in the woods. After eight days, the family received a happy news. Eight minutes later, they were plunged into a nightmare.
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