Hiker Lily Hooper Found Dead After Eight-Day Search in Nattai Park

Lily Hooper, an 18-year-old from Oakdale in Sydney's southwest, was found dead in the dense bushland of Nattai National Park on Thursday, August 20, eight days after she left home for a solo hike and never came back.

A State Emergency Service volunteer located her body around 11:30 a.m., a long way from her car, in steep cliff country that had slowed searchers for more than a week. NSW Police said they did not suspect foul play. A report is being prepared for the coroner, and a post-mortem examination was planned. Formal identification was still pending when the body was recovered.

For about ten minutes, her family thought she was alive

Before the death was confirmed, search volunteers radioed in that they believed Hooper had been found alive. That message climbed up through police ranks and reached the highest levels of the state government before anyone caught the mistake.

NSW Premier Chris Minns had been answering questions at a budget estimates hearing for about two hours when he was handed a note. He announced what he called "fantastic news," telling the room that Hooper had been found in the bush with "half a bottle of water" on her. Assistant Commissioner Joseph Cassar and Commissioner Mal Lanyon later said they did not know where the water-bottle detail had come from. Around the table, members of parliament who had followed the story for days reacted with relief. The hearing was being live-streamed.

About 25 minutes later, corrected information came through, and Minns returned to retract what he had said. "I've got some terrible news," he told the room. "I apologise to the committee, but it seems as if the early advice was wrong. Lily's body's been found, and she's been found deceased."

A cracked beer at the command post

Hooper's parents had been camped at the search command post since the night she went missing. When police told her father, Jim Hooper, that his daughter had been found, he punched the air and cracked open a beer. Cameras were at the site and captured it.

Minutes later, Jim and Lily's mother, Kirrily, were pulled aside and told the truth. Jim slumped into a chair and put his head in his hands. Kirrily broke down. The scene shifted from celebration to grief in front of the same cameras that had recorded the cheering.

NSW Assistant Commissioner Joseph Cassar said there was a gap of between eight and ten minutes before the family were given an accurate update on Lily's condition. In that window, they believed she had survived.

The search ran eight days and drew close to 1,000 people

Hooper left her home about 8 a.m. on Wednesday, August 12, to hike in Nattai National Park, a park police described as about 60 kilometres (37 miles) northwest of Mittagong. Police said they had been told she was an experienced hiker. Early inquiries indicated she reached the summit of Bonnum Pic around mid-morning and messaged family during the walk. After that there was no further contact, and investigators were later unable to confirm her route beyond the trail.

When she had not returned by 10 p.m., she was reported missing. About 11 p.m., her car was found parked on Wanganderry Road near the start of the Bonnum Pic Walking Trail, and a command post was set up that night.

What followed was one of the larger search operations the state has run. Almost 100 Australian Defence Force personnel and 280 SES volunteers joined a range of police units, including the Rescue Unit, the airwing PolAir, and the Mounted Unit. On the busiest days fresh teams headed out from 7 a.m. About 1,000 people took part across the eight days.

Investigators worked the search from more than one angle. A thermal-imaging helicopter flew overnight. Police pulled telecommunications data to trace Hooper's last known movements and to figure out what gear she might have carried. When she disappeared she was wearing a shirt and shorts, and police said it was not clear what supplies she took with her.

The terrain fought the searchers the whole time

Nattai sits in the NSW Southern Highlands and is known for sandstone cliffs, thick canopy, and rough ground. Crews worked steep drops, dense undergrowth, and complex cliff lines that blocked both aircraft and ground teams for days.

Hume Police District Chief Inspector Brendan Bernie described the conditions plainly as the search dragged on. "There is a thick canopy which doesn't help with our aerial support and it's just rough terrain," he told reporters. He also said Hooper's family, camped on site, were distressed but still holding out hope.

The canopy was heavy enough that a helicopter could not lift her body out once she was found. Crews planned to carry her out manually, on foot, because of the terrain and the dense cover overhead.

How the wrong word moved up the chain

The mistake started in the field. The ABC reported that police, as the lead agency, had assigned Hooper a code, and that emergency services are investigating whether that code was misread. Nothing has been confirmed.

Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said the error grew out of the moment crews reached her. "The miscommunication obviously was borne out of elation that Lily had been found, and her condition at that time was such that searchers were relieved," he said. "Tragically, that miscommunication then led to a deflation, and obviously we know now the impact on her family."

Lanyon said the message would have traveled through police commands, up to the police minister, Yasmin Catley, and then to the premier's office. Police keep standing lines into both offices because officials are regularly asked for updates during media conferences and Question Time. "Communication is always a challenge, and in remote areas, from time to time, it can be challenging to get the right communication through," he said.

The apologies, and a review

Lanyon apologized "unreservedly" for the miscommunication and for the "embarrassment and confusion" it caused the family. He committed the NSW Police Force and the SES to a joint review of what went wrong.

Minns said he would apologize to the family in person and reached out through police to arrange it. "I'm also absolutely devastated and profoundly sorry that anything I said may have added to the grief that that family has gone through," he said. He added in a statement, "I genuinely believed I was sharing good news."

The premier said he would look at whether strong protocols existed for how government agencies, families, and the media receive information during search operations. He was blunt about the limits of any review. It "won't change what happened over the last 24 hours," he said.

What the park service tells hikers

The New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service describes Nattai as rugged country with sandstone cliffs and remote wilderness. Its general bushwalking safety guidance warns that conditions can change fast and that many parks have limited cellphone coverage.

The parks service recommends carrying a personal locator beacon in remote country, and police used the search to remind bushwalkers to take a beacon or satellite phone. A beacon sends a distress signal with a location even where phones have no service, which matters in a place where crews had to fight both the canopy and the dead zones. Hooper had her phone with her and used it early in the walk, but police could not reach her on it after the evening of August 12.

The tributes

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament that Hooper "had so much more to offer the world." The House of Representatives observed a moment of silence for her before Question Time.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor, whose federal seat of Hume covers the area where the Hooper family lives, said: "Any parent who reads this news will hug their children tighter tonight." NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane called the outcome "devastating," noting how many people had been hoping for Lily's safe return.

Jim Hooper, in the middle of his own loss, thanked the emergency workers for their effort and forgave police for the mix-up. His daughter was 18. She had left the house on an ordinary Wednesday morning to walk a trail police believe she may never have walked before, and the search that tried to bring her home ended in a note passed across a hearing room that turned out to be wrong.