We Require a Chopper to Go Find Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Urgent Plea to Aid Loved Ones Lost Off Down Under Coast Unveiled

“We became disoriented out there,” young Austin Appelbee tells the 000 call handler, after swimming four kilometres in treacherous, open water and sprinting two kilometres to secure help for his household.

The dispatcher questions how long has passed since he set off.

“[It] was ages past … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we must get a chopper to search for them,” he states.

Authorities have released the emergency phone call made last month after the youth departed from his relatives floating at sea off the Western Australian coast to fetch help.

His demeanour remains steady and composed, even as he expresses his worry for his kin.

“I am unsure of what their condition is right now, and I’m extremely frightened,” he confides in the operator.

“Mum said to find rescue … We were in serious danger.”

The Perilous Situation

The mother and children had been swept four kilometres out to sea in treacherous conditions while using kayaks and paddleboards.

His parent urged him to set out and find help, so the teenager began, ditching first his failing kayak then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After reaching land – four hours later – he sprinted for 1.25 miles to get to a mobile phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have a brother and sister, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he explains the call handler.

“I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also add – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have sunstroke, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Vacation Gone Wrong

The group was on a break in Quindalup, 125 miles south of Perth. They departed from Geographe Bay following 10am on a Friday in late January.

The parent later described that they were playing around when the young ones “went out a bit too far”. The breeze strengthened, they lost their oars, and started being carried out.

“It pretty much all became dangerous very, very quickly,” she said.

The mother also spoke of having to make “one of the hardest decisions” to send her son to make the swim for help.

“I knew he was the strongest and he could do it,” she commented.

The Successful Mission

The youth explained being “very puffed out”.

“I just pressed on, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do elementary backstroke,” he explained.

The emergency call was made at around 6pm.

At about 8.30pm, ten hours after they first set out, the group were spotted and rescued. They had floated about 9 miles out to sea.

The audio was released with the parents' permission.

A police sergeant who coordinated the search and rescue effort said the family was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

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

“What the boy did was nothing short of extraordinary. His bravery and courage in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were instrumental in bringing about a rescue.”

The commander also commended how the teenager effectively communicated critical information.

When asked to detail the equipment for the rescue team, the boy responded: “They were green and white.”

“And I’m not sure if it’s there, but they had this fishing rod, and there was a fish on there. Because we caught one.”