Dingoes attack 3-year-old girl

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A three-year-old girl has been attacked by two dingoes on Australia's Fraser Island.

And the toddler was lucky to have escaped with only bite wounds, says one of her rescuers.

David Law told AAP the dingoes had been sitting on the beach about 50m from a group of people, including him, waiting for a barge to arrive to take them back to the mainland on Monday afternoon.

He said the toddler walked over a sand dune and into the bushes - possibly to go to the toilet, and the dogs ran in her direction.

"They obviously saw her go into the bushes and were opportunistic and made a bee-line for her," Mr Law said.

"I started running and yelling and waving, but no one could hear me because the wind was blowing in my direction.

"It's breeding season and they can be quite territorial.

"They basically had her on the ground for about five to 10 seconds.

"I got there first with another guy running from the opposite direction who got there as well and chased the dogs away.

"She was quite traumatised."

Fraser Island rangers have captured one of two dingoes involved in the attack.

Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) general manager Terry Harper said on Tuesday park rangers were still searching for the second dingo involved in the attack at Hook Point.

The girl sustained bite wounds to both her legs.

"She was with family members when the attack occurred," Mr Harper said.

"The girl received first aid at the site and then was taken to Gympie Hospital for treatment to her wounds.

"QPWS rangers are now working to locate the animals responsible to be humanely destroyed."

Mr Law, who owns a property on Fraser and regularly visits the popular tourist destination, said the child was with her mother and grandmother.

He said had either of the adults accompanied the three-year-old into the bushes the attack would not have occurred.

"People have to think of these dogs like they are bears, not furry animals," Mr Law said.

"They do not open cans of Chum for dinner, they kill to eat.

"The mother and the grandmother copped an earful from the barge driver and I lectured the grandmother.

"They said 'they'd been here for two hours and they haven't had a problem'."

Fraser Island Dingo Preservation Group spokeswoman Bree Jashin told AAP it was extremely rare for adult dingoes to attack humans.

"It's been a very long time since there has been an attack involving adult dingoes. It's normally the juveniles that can be a problem," Ms Jashin said.

The most infamous case in Australia involving a dingo was that of baby
Azaria Chamberlain.

The nine-week-old baby girl disappeared on the night of 17 August 1980 on a camping trip to Ayers Rock with her family.

Her body was never found. Her parents, Lindy and Michael Chamberlain, reported that she had been taken from their tent by a dingo.

Lindy was found guilty of murder and sent to prison, but the verdict was overturned two years later and the Chamberlains were awarded A$1.3 million in compensation for wrongful imprisonment.

- AAP, additional reporting by NZHERALD STAFF