We Require a Helicopter to Search For Them’: Adolescent’s Urgent Plea to Aid Family Adrift Off Australian Coast Unveiled

“We became disoriented out there,” young Austin Appelbee tells the 000 call handler, following a swim four kilometres in choppy, open ocean and sprinting two kilometres to summon rescue for his household.

The call taker asks how long has elapsed since he set off.

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

Police have made public the emergency phone call made in recent weeks after the teen departed from his relatives drifting at sea off the Western Australian coast to fetch help.

His tone remains clear and calm, even as he details his fear for his family.

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

“Mum said go get help … We were in massive trouble.”

The Dangerous Incident

The family group had been pulled 4km out to sea in treacherous conditions while kayaking and paddleboarding.

His mother urged him to take his kayak and get assistance, so the youth began, abandoning first his sinking craft then his cumbersome lifejacket to make the journey by swimming.

After reaching land – after an extensive period – he ran for 1.25 miles to retrieve 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 emergency services.

“I’m located 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 completely exhausted. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Holiday Turned Crisis

The holidaymakers was on holiday in Quindalup, 200km south of Perth. They departed from Geographe Bay around 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman later described that they were enjoying themselves when the children “went out a bit too far”. The wind picked up, they dropped their paddles, and started floating away.

“It pretty much all turned bad very, very quickly,” she noted.

The mother also described having to make “one of the hardest decisions” to send her son to swim ashore.

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

The Rescue Effort

The teenager described being “extremely winded”.

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

The call for help was made at around 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first set out, the group were found and brought to safety. They had been carried about fourteen kilometres out to sea.

The audio was shared with the family’s permission.

A police sergeant who oversaw the operation said the family was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

“They were in serious jeopardy, and time was of the essence given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading.

“What the teenager did was truly remarkable. His fortitude and resolve in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were crucial in bringing about a rescue.”

The commander also commended how the youth calmly conveyed critical information.

When asked to describe the paddleboards for the authorities, the boy said: “They were coloured green and white.”

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