Qld town in shock after girl shot dead

The body of an eight-year-old girl accidentally shot and killed in a north Queensland community has been flown to Brisbane for a post-mortem examination.

It is believed the girl's 12-year-old cousin was playing with a gun when it went off but police investigations are ongoing.

The local girl was staying with extended family when she was fatally shot on Tuesday morning in the indigenous community of Aurukun, just south of Weipa on western Cape York.

A family member, who didn't want to be named, told AAP on Thursday that both families are in shock.

"The families are really distraught and really upset," he said.

Police initially thought there would be a backlash from the death but this hasn't been the case because the families are so close, the family member says.

Weipa Police Inspector Paul James said earlier this week that the entire community was grieving the girl's death.

"It's tragic, obviously," he said.

"It's a terrible thing for any community. It's only a small community so everyone will be affected in some way."

A police spokesman says the girl's body has been flown to Brisbane for a post-mortem examination and a report will be prepared for the coroner.