Canadian teenager identified as Piper James found dead surrounded by dingoes on world’s largest sand island in Australia

A Canadian woman found dead on a popular tourist island in Queensland has been identified as 19-year-old Piper James, multiple news outlets, including 7news, confirmed. According to Australia’s ABC News, two men driving south along the eastern beach of K’gari discovered James’s body at about 6:35 a.m. on Monday, January 19. The men reported seeing the body surrounded by a large pack of dingoes on the island, formerly known as Fraser Island.

Piper James had been travelling Australia with a friend

James had arrived in Australia from Canada in November, the Courier Mail reported. She was travelling with a close friend from Canada and had visited several destinations across the country during her trip. According to the Daily Mail, the pair had visited Bondi Beach, surfed at Manly, partied in Cairns, and toured the Whitsundays before travelling to K’gari.


Authorities have not disclosed the exact circumstances leading up to James’s death. In a press release, Queensland police stated that investigations into the incident are ongoing and she had gone “for a swim.”


“We simply can’t confirm whether this young lady drowned or died as a result of being attacked by dingoes,” Queensland Police Insp. Paul Algie of the Wide Bay Burnett District told ABC News.

Dingo attack on K’gari

Dingoes, known traditionally as Wongari, are protected on K’gari as a native species, according to the Queensland government Parks and Forests website. K’gari attracts around 400,000 visitors annually and is the world’s largest sand island, according to ABC News. The island is a major tourist destination known for its beaches, freshwater lakes, and wildlife.

In December, Queensland’s Parks and Forests issued an alert warning of “heightened dingo activity” along K’gari’s eastern beach. The alert, posted on the department’s website, remains in effect until the end of January. “Dingoes have been ripping tents, stealing food or property, damaging property and approaching people,” the website states.

While dingoes are considered part of the island’s appeal, authorities have long warned that interactions with the animals can be dangerous and have drawn global attention in the past. The last reported fatal dingo attack on K’gari occurred in 2001, when nine-year-old Clinton Gage was killed after being attacked near a campsite, according to ABC news.