‘We Need a Aircraft to Locate Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Urgent Plea to Aid Loved Ones Lost Off Aussie Coast Revealed

“We became disoriented out there,” young Austin Appelbee explains to the 000 call handler, following a swim 2.5 miles in rough, open ocean and sprinting two kilometres to summon rescue for his household.

The dispatcher questions how long has elapsed since he started out.

“[It] was ages past … I think they’re kilometres out to sea. I think we need a chopper to search for them,” he reports.

Police have disclosed the recorded plea made last month after the youth departed from his relatives floating at sea off the WA coast to fetch help.

His demeanour remains clear and calm, even as he details his concern for his family members.

“I don’t know what their condition is right now, and I’m terrified,” he confides in the operator.

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

The Dangerous Incident

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

His mum asked him to set out and get assistance, so the boy commenced, discarding first his failing kayak then his bulky flotation device to swim the distance.

After getting to the beach – after an extensive period – he sprinted for two kilometres 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 explains the call handler.

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – 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 hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Vacation Gone Wrong

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

The mother later recalled that they were enjoying themselves when the young ones “went out a bit too far”. The breeze strengthened, they lost their oars, and started floating away.

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

The parent also referenced having to make “an incredibly tough choice” to send her son to swim ashore.

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

The Search Operation

The youth explained being “extremely winded”.

“I just pressed on, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do survival backstroke,” he said.

The call for help was made at about 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, ten hours after they first set out, the family were found and brought to safety. They had been carried about 9 miles out to sea.

The recording was shared with the parents' permission.

A forward commander who coordinated the rescue mission said the family was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

“They were in serious jeopardy, and time was extremely pressing given how much time they had been in the water and with light running out.

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

The sergeant also highlighted how the teenager calmly conveyed key facts.

When asked to detail the paddleboards for the authorities, the teenager replied: “They were green and white.”

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