Dad of 17-Year-Old Killed in Shark Attack Opens Up About How He Learned His Daughter Was Dead

Mar. 15, 2025

Charlize Zmuda, the Australian teen who died following a shark attack.Photo:Charlize Zmuda/Instagram

Charlize Zmuda/Instagram

The family of a teenage girl who waskilled in a shark attackoff of a popular Australian beach is speaking out.The victim has been identified as Charlize Zmuda, 17, according toAustralia’s ABC NewsandNews.com.auandThe Sydney Morning Herald.The Queensland Ambulance Servicesaid in an X postthat the agency responded to a “serious shark bite incident” involving the 17-year-old victim at Woorim Beach on Monday, Feb. 3. Paramedics and witnesses attempted to save the teenage girl, but she was pronounced dead at the scene,The Sydney Morning Heraldreported.Charlize’s father Steve told the Australian newspaperThe Courier Mailthat he became concerned after hearing sirens near the beach, News.com.au reported.After making some calls, Steve said he learned his daughter was involved in the attack. “I screamed, all the neighbors came running out,” he said.A police officer arrived at his home a short time later to deliver the grim news. “He said ‘You know’ and I said ‘I do,’ ” Steve told the newspaper. “I was a broken man, he was a broken man.”Then, Steve informed his wife, Renee, and youngest daughter, 13-year-old Steph, about Charlize’s death. Renee raced over to the beach afterward.Bribie Island, Australia.Getty“Her life may have been cut way too short, and I am heartbroken that I will never get to see all the amazing things I know she would have accomplished,” Renee explained, “but I find peace in the fact that she crammed so much living into the 17 years she had here on earth … I know she will be watching over us.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.The Courier Mailreported that Charlize was a Bribie Island Surf Life Saving Club member, according to News.com.au. Her parents described her as a “cheeky” and “witty” young lady.“She just wanted to travel after school,” Renee told the paper. “She didn’t really know what she wanted to do in life other than that she loved living it and loved being at the ocean.”Steve said his late daughter was “so musically gifted,” according to ABC News. “She could hear a piece of music and then pick up and play it at the drop of a heartbeat,” he explained.A vigil for Charlize was held the day after the fatal attack, News.com.au and ABC News reported. There, her dad encouraged others to continue enjoying the beach his daughter once loved.“It’s a big part of our lives, we’ve got our family here, our community and we love everybody here,” he said.The Feb. 3 incident marked the third shark attack in Queensland in the last three months, according to ABC News. Surf Life Saving Queensland announced that Woorim Beach would be temporarily closed following the latest attack.

The family of a teenage girl who waskilled in a shark attackoff of a popular Australian beach is speaking out.

The victim has been identified as Charlize Zmuda, 17, according toAustralia’s ABC NewsandNews.com.auandThe Sydney Morning Herald.

The Queensland Ambulance Servicesaid in an X postthat the agency responded to a “serious shark bite incident” involving the 17-year-old victim at Woorim Beach on Monday, Feb. 3. Paramedics and witnesses attempted to save the teenage girl, but she was pronounced dead at the scene,The Sydney Morning Heraldreported.

Charlize’s father Steve told the Australian newspaperThe Courier Mailthat he became concerned after hearing sirens near the beach, News.com.au reported.

After making some calls, Steve said he learned his daughter was involved in the attack. “I screamed, all the neighbors came running out,” he said.

A police officer arrived at his home a short time later to deliver the grim news. “He said ‘You know’ and I said ‘I do,’ ” Steve told the newspaper. “I was a broken man, he was a broken man.”

Then, Steve informed his wife, Renee, and youngest daughter, 13-year-old Steph, about Charlize’s death. Renee raced over to the beach afterward.

Bribie Island, Australia.Getty

Getty

“Her life may have been cut way too short, and I am heartbroken that I will never get to see all the amazing things I know she would have accomplished,” Renee explained, “but I find peace in the fact that she crammed so much living into the 17 years she had here on earth … I know she will be watching over us.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The Courier Mailreported that Charlize was a Bribie Island Surf Life Saving Club member, according to News.com.au. Her parents described her as a “cheeky” and “witty” young lady.

“She just wanted to travel after school,” Renee told the paper. “She didn’t really know what she wanted to do in life other than that she loved living it and loved being at the ocean.”

Steve said his late daughter was “so musically gifted,” according to ABC News. “She could hear a piece of music and then pick up and play it at the drop of a heartbeat,” he explained.

A vigil for Charlize was held the day after the fatal attack, News.com.au and ABC News reported. There, her dad encouraged others to continue enjoying the beach his daughter once loved.

“It’s a big part of our lives, we’ve got our family here, our community and we love everybody here,” he said.

The Feb. 3 incident marked the third shark attack in Queensland in the last three months, according to ABC News. Surf Life Saving Queensland announced that Woorim Beach would be temporarily closed following the latest attack.

source: people.com