“SHE’S ALIVE” — THEN THE DEVASTATING CORRECTION: LILY HOOPER’S FAMILY GIVEN 10 MINUTES OF HOPE

After eight days of searching, the family of 18-year-old Australian hiker Lily Hooper finally thought they had received the news they had been praying for.

Lily had been found alive.

But within minutes, that announcement was corrected.

Lily had been found — but she was dead.

A SEARCH THAT ENDED IN HEARTBREAK

Lily disappeared on August 12 after leaving her home in Oakdale, New South Wales, for a hike in Nattai National Park.

Her vehicle was later found near the Bonnum Pic Walking Trail, triggering a huge multi-agency search across steep terrain, dense bushland and difficult cliff areas.

Nearly 1,000 people were involved in the search operation, including police, SES volunteers and Australian Defence Force personnel.

Then, on Thursday morning, searchers located a body in dense bushland.

THE MISTAKE THAT LASTED MINUTES

Around 11:30 a.m., initial information from the search area indicated that Lily had been located alive.

That information was passed through the emergency response chain and eventually reached her family.

NSW Premier Chris Minns was also told Lily had been found alive and publicly announced the news.

But within approximately 8–10 minutes, a more accurate report reached authorities.

The person found was believed to be Lily — but she had died.

The Premier was forced to return with the devastating correction:

“I’ve got some terrible news.”

He apologized after acknowledging that the earlier information had been wrong.

POLICE APOLOGIZE TO THE FAMILY

NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon issued an “unreserved” apology, describing the communication failure as something that was “born out of elation.”

Assistant Commissioner Joseph Cassar said the family had believed Lily was alive for roughly eight to 10 minutes before receiving the corrected information.

The rugged location and difficulties communicating between search teams were cited as factors in how the incorrect information spread.

Police said the communication process would be reviewed.

HER FAMILY WAITED EIGHT DAYS

Lily’s family had remained at the search command post throughout the operation, desperately hoping she would be found.

Instead, they experienced something almost unimaginable:

They were briefly told their daughter had survived.

Then they were told she had died.

The cause of Lily’s death has not yet been established. A report will be prepared for the coroner, and police were still working to recover her body from the difficult terrain.

EIGHT DAYS OF SEARCHING.

TEN MINUTES OF HOPE.

A LIFETIME OF GRIEF.

Lily Hooper was only 18 years old.

Her family spent more than a week waiting for her to come home.

The search finally found Lily — but the news her family received first was tragically not the truth.