Bindi Irwin missed her late father Steve Irwin’s annual gala in Las Vegas on Saturday, May 10, after suffering a ruptured appendix.
“She’s going to be OK, but surgery — out of all the things we were ready for, that was not one of them,” Bindi’s brother Robert Irwin told People in an interview published on Saturday. “She’s just come out the other side of endometriosis and now the appendix goes. Health is so important — it really is.”
Robert, 21, confirmed that his sister made the trip out to Las Vegas but then had to undergo an unexpected operation. Bindi and Robert’s mother, Terri Irwin, also missed the memorial event to help take care of the Crikey! It’s the Irwins star.
“[Bindi] was ready to come to the gala, put on a brave face in a lot of discomfort and a lot of pain and said, ‘Nope, I’m just going to tough it out, I’m going to go for it,’ ” Robert confirmed. “But the surgeon said, ‘No, your appendix is going. That thing’s gotta come out.’ Health has to come first. She’s very sad. She’s devastated that she and Mom can’t be here, but I know she’ll make a speedy recovery.”
Bindi posed with her mother and brother via Instagram on Friday, May 9, and wrote that she was looking forward to “raising funds and awareness for Wildlife Warriors” at the Las Vegas event.
The Steve Irwin Gala has been held annually since 2002 in order to raise money for global conservation efforts. Steve, a famed zookeeper and conservationist, tragically died at age 44 in September 2006 from an injury caused by a stingray.
As Robert mentioned, Bindi, 26, announced in March 2023 that she’d undergone surgery for the uterine condition endometriosis after enduring a decade of “insurmountable” pain. She shared with 9honey Celebrity in September 2024 that she’d spent so long “fighting an invisible battle daily” before she was finally diagnosed with endometriosis.
“At one point in my journey I was told that it was all in my head by a doctor,” she recalled. “I started to truly believe it.”
Bindi — who shares daughter Grace, born March 2021, with husband Chandler Powell — credited her mother Terri with giving her the strength to get through a decade of chronic pain.
“She was there every step of the way for me, right down to helping me to the bathroom when I could barely walk after surgery,” she recalled. “I don’t know what I would do without my incredible mama … I hope I am able to be even half the incredible mama to Grace that my mom is to me.”
While Bindi missed Steve’s memorial gala this year, she paid heartfelt tribute to her late father on what would have been his 63rd birthday in February.
“To the world, you will forever be remembered as the greatest Wildlife Warrior,” Bindi wrote via Instagram. “To me, you’ll always be the most incredible dad and now our family’s guiding light. I love you and I miss you every day.”
In April, the Dancing with the Stars season 21 champion offered support when her brother Robert was announced as the first contestant joining DWTS season 34.
“Robert, you are going to absolutely shine in the ballroom. I wish I could express the magnitude of how proud I am of you and everything you have achieved,” Bindi wrote via Instagram. “[I] can’t wait to cheer you on each week as you inspire so many with your strength, kindness and determination. Here’s to an extraordinary journey ahead.”
Dancing With the Stars airs this fall on ABC and Disney+ with new episodes streaming the next day on Hulu.
