(Photo by WILLIAM WEST / AFP)
Australian authorities are investigating after the body of a Canadian woman was found on a popular beach, surrounded by a pack of dingoes.
On Monday, 19 Jan 2026, Queensland police in Australia issued a statement saying that at about 06:30 local time, the body of a 19-year-old Canadian woman was found on a beach on K'gari Island off Australia's east coast.
Inspector Paul Algie told local media that two men driving along the beach saw about 10 dingoes surrounding an object, which turned out to be the woman's body. Police are urgently investigating the incident but have not yet confirmed whether she died from drowning or a dingo attack.
Inspector Algie said there were marks on the body consistent with contact and disturbance by dingoes. “It was a deeply distressing and gruesome sight for those who found the body.”
Australia’s ABC news reported that the woman had worked at a hostel for independent travelers for the past six weeks and had told friends she planned to go swimming at 5 a.m.
“She was a young woman seeking happiness in a beautiful part of the world, which makes this tragedy all the more heartbreaking,” Algie said. He added that an autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
The body was found near the Maheno shipwreck, which sank and washed ashore in 1935. The rusted shipwreck has become a popular tourist destination.
This area is well known for its significant population of dingoes, a native wild dog species protected within Queensland’s national parks.
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Source:bbc