British teenager dies from dehydration while hiking on holiday in Australia

Cape Range National Park, Australia. Getty

A 14-year-old boy has reportedly died from heat exhaustion after he collapsed while hiking with his father on holiday in Western Australia.

WA Today reports that the teenager from Scotland was bush walking along the Badjirrajirra Creek in the Cape Range National Park, about 20 kilometres south of Exmouth, when he collapsed to the ground at 2pm.

The pair were reportedly four hours into the hike with little water or shade and temperatures in the region reached above 40C.

The boy's father called emergency services and police found the pair shortly after, around 700 metres down a gully, close to the car park of the Badjirrajirra Creek walk.

A police statement read that conditions were hazardous with 'rough terrain and high temperature'.

Police carried the teenager to the car park and ambulance officers arrived soon after.

But his condition deteriorated and police and ambulance officers performed CPR as he was taken on a stretcher to the ambulance. He was transferred to Exmouth Hospital and died in the early evening.

The boy had travelled to Australia in mid-December to visit his father, who lives in Geraldton, located north of Perth.

According to The West Australian, the temperatures in the town of Exmouth had hit 48C on Friday.

Exmouth shire president Turk Shales told the newspaper he was shocked that something this devastating had happened near the town so close to Christmas.

'When a wind goes south to south-west, it goes to the top of the cape and it fans... it's like a heater,' he said.

'It gets very, very hot. I'm just so sorry for them. My heartfelt condolences go out to the family.'

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