More than 2000 heartbroken members of a quiet beachside community have gathered for a vigil to remember a much-loved shark attack victim.
Charlize Zmuda, 17, was swimming off Woorim Beach when she was attacked, suffering injuries to her upper body and dying soon after being pulled from the water.
Parents hugged their children tight and school students embraced tearfully as they arrived at the beach at Bribie Island adorned with floral tributes on Tuesday.
“Just awful. An unspeakable tragedy,” a mother told AAP.
Warning: some readers may find the photo below confronting.
“I hugged my boys as soon as I heard the news.
“The whole community is shell-shocked.”
A student in the same year group as Charlize said he was struggling to reconcile with the reality of it all.
Charlize’s father Steven Zmuda addressed the crowd from within a circle that formed on the beach, before laying the first of many candles.
Only the ocean waves could be heard as the big crowd stood silently.
Despite the tragedy Mr Zmuda has urged Australians to not be afraid of the ocean.
“Something that my wife and I wanted to say is we don’t want people to stop coming to the beach and enjoying our beach,” he told reporters earlier.
“It’s a big part of our lives.”
The grieving father fondly remembered his daughter’s passion for the ocean, joining the local lifesaving club aged eight.
Want more free local news? Follow Sunshine Coast News on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, and sign up for our FREE daily news email.
She was vice-captain of her lifesaving patrol and competed in the Inflatable Rescue Boat world championships in 2024, her family said.
Mr Zmuda hailed his daughter’s musical talents as he tried to keep his emotions in check.
“She could hear a piece of music and then pick up and play it at the drop of a heartbeat,” he said.
“To have all that talent taken away right now that kills me.”
Charlize’s family earlier issued a statement saying she was a shining light who touched everyone she met.
“She loved the beach and it truly was her happiest place on earth,” it read.
“She loved four-wheel-driving up the beach and anyone who went with her knew they would have to stop and pick up every piece of rubbish she saw along the way.
“Please focus on the incredible life she lived and not the awful way she died.”
Surf Life Saving Queensland chief executive Dave Whimpey said it was shocking and confronting to hear they had lost one of their own.
“These incidents do happen, they’re quite rare, but it does happen to a lifesaver, a young girl and everything to live for doing what she loved,” he said.
“But the family is saying ‘please enjoy the water’.”
Tributes soon began flowing in for the teen both online and in the Bribie Island community.
“It’s the kind of heartbreak that shakes the very foundation of who we are, leaving us reeling in disbelief, grief and sorrow beyond words,” her Bribie Island swimming club said on Facebook.
“Her kindness, her laughter, her strength – these are all gifts she has left behind and they will live on in all who knew and loved her.”
Principal of her Caboolture college Michael Connolly said Charlize had served the school and local communities with distinction.
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli added: “To think that a young girl doing what she loves could have her life taken away is really, really troubling”.
In the past decade there has been an average of 20 shark incidents nationwide every year, according to the Australian Shark-Incident Database.
