Report on the incident of 3 February 2025, updated on 18 September 2026.
A 17-year-old girl died in a shark attack at Woorim Beach on Bribie Island, north of Brisbane, on Monday, 3 February 2025. According to ABC News reporting at the time, she suffered upper body injuries while swimming. Surf Life Saving Queensland confirmed the fatal attack.
Emergency services called shortly before 5 pm
The Queensland Ambulance Service was called to the beach shortly before 5 pm local time. The teenager could not be saved. This time refers to the call to emergency services, rather than a confirmed time of the attack to the exact minute.
Surf Life Saving Queensland said Woorim Beach would remain closed until further notice. The beach is on the island’s open eastern coast and is used for swimming, surfing and fishing. Drumlines, baited hooks used to catch sharks, were already in use there at the time.
The following day, the victim was identified as Charlize Zmuda. The 17-year-old was herself involved in surf lifesaving. The initial report on 3 February did not identify a confirmed shark species; the later assessment appears in the update below.
Update of 18 September 2026
Coroner Carol Lee found no need for an additional public hearing, known as an inquest. The court register dates her written findings to 16 September 2026; ABC News reported on them on 17 September. According to that report, Charlize died from severe right arm injuries consistent with a bull shark attack.
The investigation also examined the shark control programme at the unpatrolled beach section. It found that 18 drumlines were positioned about 300 to 500 metres offshore. They had been serviced on 1 February 2025; an inspection after the attack also found no equipment failures. Shark nets were not used there because of strong tidal currents.
Lee considered the risk mitigation framework appropriate. However, nets and drumlines do not form an impenetrable barrier. According to the reasoning reported by ABC, there were no outstanding conflicts of evidence or unresolved suspicious circumstances warranting a public inquest. The published findings aim to explain the death and help prevent similar cases.
The featured image shows a bull shark in the Bahamas and does not depict the incident.