‘We are devastated’: Family of Esperance shark attack victim pay tribute to beloved ‘gentle giant’

Having spent a lot of time in the ocean, the family said the 37-year-old would not support a shark cull or any attempt to kill the shark responsible — maintaining he had dived with the animals and “knew the risks”.

Steve’s partner, family and friends extended their thanks to the Esperance community and emergency services for their support, including the family liaison officer from Esperance Police.

Drone footage coincidentally taken in the moments after the attack confirmed Payne could not have survived, though his body is yet to be found.

“[The drone footage] shows a lot of blood, the shark and some other things in there I don’t particularly want to go into, and I don’t think anybody else needs to see, other than maybe the coroner and some other experts who will determine the type of shark and size,” Esperance Police Station officer-in-charge Senior Sergeant Chris Taylor said.

Payne’s surfboard was recovered with bite marks in it and will be tested to determine the type of shark that attacked him.

His family has told police they do not support culling the shark, and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development on Tuesday confirmed there was no active search under way for the predator, which has not been spotted since.

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It’s understood Payne’s family is on their way to Western Australia.

According to his LinkedIn, Payne is a sales and marketing director and volunteer firefighter. His social media profiles reveal he is an avid traveller, surfer and snowboarder.

The search for his body is expected to be called off on Wednesday, and the beach reopened.

Esperance has been the location of four of the state’s last seven fatal shark attacks, with locals in the area calling for more to be done to mitigate the risk of the predators interacting with water users.

There have been three other fatal shark attacks in the area in recent years; teenager surfer Laeticia Brouwer was mauled by a suspected great white shark in 2017 while in the water with her father; diver Gary Johnson, 57, was attacked by a great white while scuba diving with his wife in 2020; and surfer Andrew Sharpe’s body was never found after he was attacked in 2020.

There have also been many non-fatal attacks including in 2022 when a 20-year-old sitting in an inflatable pool ring was bitten about 200 metres offshore.

In 2014, Sean Pollard lost his left arm and right hand in an attack, and in 2006, teenager Zac Golebiowski lost his leg after being attacked while surfing.