The "irreplaceable" Kate Goodchild died in her husband's arms in the Dreamworld tragedy as their distraught 12-year-old daughter looked on, her mother-in-law has recounted.
Gillian Turner says her son, David Goodchild, reached his childhood sweetheart immediately after the deadly malfunction on the Thunder River Rapids Ride on Tuesday which killed four people.
"My son managed to reach his partner ... who died in his arms while his 12-year-old daughter looked on screaming in the background," Ms Turner said in a statement to reporters in Canberra.
"I would like to believe that my 12-year-old granddaughter was saved so she could tell her little sister what a wonderful mum Kate was.
"We're all numb. We're all in shock."
Ms Turner's granddaughter was aboard the same raft but managed to escape after it flipped and killed four passengers due to a conveyor belt malfunction.
She paid tribute to her daughter-in-law who was not only well liked but a "fabulous" mother.
"Kate was irreplaceable: " Ms Turner said.
"She was warm-hearted, kind, generous, funny, quirky, and she had lots of friends.
"She's going to be missed not only by my son and our granddaughter, but by a lot of people."
As well as Mrs Goodchild, her brother Luke Dorsett, his partner Roozbeh Araghi and Sydney-based New Zealand expat Cindy Low all died in the incident.
Ms Low's 10-year-old son also escaped after being thrown from the raft in what police have described as a "near miracle".
Ray Dorsett, Kate and Luke's uncle, said they've been blindsided by the tragedy.
"You never expect it to be, you know, part of your family," he said.
"For it to happen, and the way it has in the tragic incident, it really is hard to explain just how that's going to affect the family in the future."
Ms Turner also criticised Dreamworld owners Ardent Leisure for failing to contact them since the tragedy on Tuesday.
"We can't understand. We want to find out what happened and why."
Ardent chief executive Deborah Thomas was left embarrassed during a press conference following the company's AGM on Thursday, after it was revealed no one from the company had contacted Mrs Goodchild and Mr Dorsett's mother, Karen Dorsett.
