We Must Have a Chopper to Search For Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Urgent Plea to Aid Loved Ones Lost Off Australian Coast Disclosed

“We became disoriented out there,” young Austin Appelbee tells the triple-zero dispatcher, having swum four kilometres in rough, open water and running two kilometres to summon rescue for his family.

The operator inquires how long has passed since he set off.

“[It] was a very long time ago … I think they’re kilometres out to sea. I think we require a chopper to go find them,” he states.

Emergency services have made public the distress call made last month after the teen departed from his family adrift at sea off the WA coast to fetch help.

His demeanour remains steady and composed, even as he expresses his fear for his family.

“I don’t know what their condition is right now, and I’m extremely frightened,” he informs the dispatcher.

“Mum said to seek assistance … We were in grave peril.”

The Dangerous Incident

The family group had been carried 2.5 miles out to sea in rough conditions while enjoying water sports.

His parent urged him to take his kayak and get assistance, so the boy began, ditching first his failing kayak then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After reaching land – following a four-hour swim – he ran for 1.25 miles to retrieve a cell phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have younger siblings, 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 medical help because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have heatstroke, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Holiday Turned Crisis

The family was on a break in Quindalup, two hundred kilometres south of Perth. They began their trip 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 dropped their paddles, and started drifting.

“It sort of all turned bad very, very quickly,” she said.

The parent also referenced having to make “a terribly difficult call” to send her son to swim ashore.

“I knew he was the most capable and he had the ability to succeed,” she commented.

The Rescue Effort

The teenager explained being “extremely winded”.

“I just continued swimming, I do the breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do elementary backstroke,” he explained.

The call for help was made at approximately 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, ten hours after they first departed, the family were spotted and rescued. They had floated about fourteen kilometres out to sea.

The audio was released with the family’s permission.

A forward commander who coordinated the operation said the group was in an “incredibly perilous state”.

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

“What the teenager did was incredibly brave. His fortitude and resolve in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were instrumental in bringing about a positive result.”

The officer also commended how the teenager clearly relayed vital details.

When asked to detail the equipment for the rescue team, the teenager said: “They were coloured green and white.”

“And I’m not sure if it’s still attached, but they had this rod, and there was a fish hooked. Since we hooked one.”