We Must Have a Helicopter to Locate Them’: Teenager’s Distress Call to Save Loved Ones Adrift Off Down Under Coast Revealed

“We became disoriented out there,” young Austin Appelbee tells the triple-zero dispatcher, after swimming 4km in treacherous, open ocean and jogging 2km to summon rescue for his family.

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

“[It] was quite some time back … I think they’re far offshore. I think we must get a rescue aircraft to search for them,” he reports.

Emergency services have disclosed the distress call made in recent weeks after the boy left his relatives adrift at sea off the Western Australian coast to find rescuers.

His tone remains steady and composed, even as he voices his fear for his family.

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

“Mum said to seek assistance … We were in massive trouble.”

The Dangerous Incident

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

His parent urged him to take his kayak and find help, so the boy set off, ditching first his failing kayak then his cumbersome lifejacket to cover the remaining stretch.

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

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have a brother and sister, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he states the emergency services.

“I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m completely exhausted. I have sunstroke, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Getaway in Peril

The family was on holiday in Quindalup, 125 miles south of Perth. They set off from Geographe Bay around 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman later described that they were having fun when the kids “drifted further than intended”. The breeze strengthened, they lost their oars, and started floating away.

“It sort of all went wrong very, very quickly,” she noted.

The parent also spoke of having to make “a terribly difficult call” to instruct her son to swim to land.

“I knew he was the best swimmer and he was able to manage it,” she said.

The Rescue Effort

The teenager recalled being “extremely winded”.

“I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do a floating stroke,” 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 been carried about 9 miles out to sea.

The audio was released with the parents' permission.

A police sergeant who managed the operation said the family was in an “extremely dire situation”.

“They were in real trouble, and time was of the essence given how much time they had been in the water and with daylight fading.

“What the boy did was nothing short of extraordinary. His fortitude and resolve in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were crucial in bringing about a rescue.”

The commander also highlighted how the boy clearly relayed critical information.

When asked to detail the equipment for the authorities, the youth said: “They were coloured green and white.”

“And I’m not sure if it’s there, but they had this rod, and there was a fish hooked. Because we managed to catch a fish.”