Tributes are being paid to 18-year-old hiker Lily Hooper, whose body was discovered in the New South Wales Southern Highlands after an eight-day search.
Hooper was last seen leaving her Oakdale home at 8am on August 12 for a planned hike in Nattai National Park. Her family reported her missing
when she failed to return by 10pm.
Her car was later found near the Bonnum Pic Walking Trail, prompting a major search involving nearly 100 Australian Defence Force personnel, trail bikes, horses, dogs and helicopters.
Crews searched terrain marked by steep ravines and thick bush before finding Hooper’s body about 11.30am yesterday.
Messages of condolence have since emerged from across the community, where Hooper was known as an experienced bushwalker and active member of several groups.
Wollondilly Mayor Matt Gould said the Wollondilly Performing Arts Centre and Wollondilly Shire Library had been illuminated in purple and flags at the council chambers lowered to half-mast.
“These are small gestures, but I hope they will show in some way just how deeply Lily’s loss is being felt across our community,” he wrote on Facebook.
Bujutsu Martial Arts and Fitness Centre, where Hooper trained regularly, remembered her as a talented and determined martial artist.
“She was a talented and tough martial artist, but despite that toughness, Lily was such a lovely person,” the club said.
“She earned the respect, trust and friendship of everyone who had the privilege of training alongside her.”
Hooper had been only months away from earning her blue belt.
“I will really miss her smile, her conversations and the moments we shared on the mat,” sensei Mark Szalajko said.
Meanwhile, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon apologised after a communication error led Hooper’s family to believe she had been found alive.
The mistake resulted in about 10 minutes of confusion before the correct information was relayed.
“As a parent, I can’t conceive the unimaginable grief they are going through,” Lanyon said, addressing the media on Thursday afternoon.