‘We Need a Chopper to Locate Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Emergency Call to Aid Family Lost Off Australian Coast Disclosed

“We got lost out there,” young Austin Appelbee explains to the triple-zero dispatcher, following a swim 4km in treacherous, open water and running 2km to summon rescue for his kin.

The operator asks how long has gone by since he set off.

“[It] was quite some time back … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we need a rescue aircraft to locate them,” he says.

Emergency services have disclosed the recorded plea made previously after the boy left his family drifting at sea off the Western Australian coast to find rescuers.

His tone remains lucid and collected, even as he expresses his concern for his family.

“I have no idea about what their condition is right now, and I’m really scared,” he tells the dispatcher.

“Mum said to seek assistance … We were in serious danger.”

The Harrowing Ordeal

The holidaymakers had been carried 2.5 miles out to sea in treacherous conditions while kayaking and paddleboarding.

His mum asked him to use his craft and find help, so the boy set off, abandoning first his sinking craft then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After making it to shore – four hours later – he raced for two kilometres to get to a mobile phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have two siblings, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he states the operator.

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m extremely tired. I have sunstroke, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Getaway in Peril

The group was on holiday in Quindalup, two hundred kilometres south of Perth. They set off from Geographe Bay following 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman later explained that they were playing around when the kids “ventured out too far”. The conditions worsened, they dropped their paddles, and started being carried out.

“It kind of all went wrong very, very quickly,” she remarked.

The mother also described having to make “a terribly difficult call” to instruct her son to make the swim for help.

“I knew he was the best swimmer and he had the ability to succeed,” she stated.

The Search Operation

The teenager recalled being “very puffed out”.

“I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do a floating stroke,” he explained.

The emergency call was made at approximately 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first began, the stranded individuals were found and brought to safety. They had drifted about 9 miles out to sea.

The emergency call was made public with the mother’s permission.

A forward commander who coordinated the search and rescue effort said the group was in an “extremely dire situation”.

“They were in genuine danger, and time was of the essence given how long they had been in the water and with light running out.

“What the teenager did was nothing short of extraordinary. His heroic actions in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a positive result.”

The officer also commended how the boy effectively communicated critical information.

When asked to identify the paddleboards for the authorities, the youth replied: “They were a green and white colour.”

“And I’m not sure if it’s still on, but they had this fishing line, and there was a fish on there. Since we managed to catch a fish.”