🔗 Share this article We Must Have a Aircraft to Search For Them’: Adolescent’s Urgent Plea to Rescue Loved Ones Adrift Off Down Under Coast Unveiled “We got lost out there,” young Austin Appelbee explains to the emergency operator, following a swim 4km in treacherous, the sea and jogging 2km to secure help for his kin. The dispatcher inquires how much time has gone by since he started out. “[It] was ages past … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we require a chopper to go find them,” he reports. Authorities have disclosed the emergency phone call made last month after the teen left his loved ones floating at sea off the West Australian coast to find rescuers. His voice remains clear and calm, even as he expresses his fear for his family. “I have no idea about what their state is right now, and I’m really scared,” he confides in the dispatcher. “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 enjoying water sports. His mum urged him to take his kayak and get assistance, so the youth set off, abandoning first his sinking craft then his bulky flotation device to make the journey by swimming. After getting to the beach – four hours later – he ran for two kilometres to access a mobile phone. “Hello, my name is Austin … I have younger siblings, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he tells the emergency services. “I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also explain – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m completely exhausted. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to faint.” A Holiday Turned Crisis The family was on vacation 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 having fun when the children “drifted further than intended”. The breeze strengthened, they dropped their paddles, and started floating away. “It sort of all became dangerous very, very quickly,” she noted. The mother also referenced having to make “a terribly difficult call” to instruct her son to swim to land. “I knew he was the strongest and he had the ability to succeed,” she said. The Search Operation The teenager explained being “completely out of breath”. “I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do a floating stroke,” he said. The distress call was made at about 6pm. At around 8.30pm, many hours after they first departed, the group were located and saved. They had floated about fourteen kilometres out to sea. The audio was shared with the family’s permission. A police sergeant who managed the operation said the group was in an “desperately dangerous position”. “They were in genuine danger, and time was absolutely critical given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading. “What the boy did was incredibly brave. His bravery and courage in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome.” The commander also highlighted how the teenager calmly conveyed key facts. When asked to describe the equipment for the rescue team, the boy said: “They were a green and white colour.” “And I’m not sure if it’s there, but they had this fishing line, and there was a fish hooked. Since we caught one.”
“We got lost out there,” young Austin Appelbee explains to the emergency operator, following a swim 4km in treacherous, the sea and jogging 2km to secure help for his kin. The dispatcher inquires how much time has gone by since he started out. “[It] was ages past … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we require a chopper to go find them,” he reports. Authorities have disclosed the emergency phone call made last month after the teen left his loved ones floating at sea off the West Australian coast to find rescuers. His voice remains clear and calm, even as he expresses his fear for his family. “I have no idea about what their state is right now, and I’m really scared,” he confides in the dispatcher. “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 enjoying water sports. His mum urged him to take his kayak and get assistance, so the youth set off, abandoning first his sinking craft then his bulky flotation device to make the journey by swimming. After getting to the beach – four hours later – he ran for two kilometres to access a mobile phone. “Hello, my name is Austin … I have younger siblings, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he tells the emergency services. “I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also explain – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m completely exhausted. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to faint.” A Holiday Turned Crisis The family was on vacation 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 having fun when the children “drifted further than intended”. The breeze strengthened, they dropped their paddles, and started floating away. “It sort of all became dangerous very, very quickly,” she noted. The mother also referenced having to make “a terribly difficult call” to instruct her son to swim to land. “I knew he was the strongest and he had the ability to succeed,” she said. The Search Operation The teenager explained being “completely out of breath”. “I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do a floating stroke,” he said. The distress call was made at about 6pm. At around 8.30pm, many hours after they first departed, the group were located and saved. They had floated about fourteen kilometres out to sea. The audio was shared with the family’s permission. A police sergeant who managed the operation said the group was in an “desperately dangerous position”. “They were in genuine danger, and time was absolutely critical given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading. “What the boy did was incredibly brave. His bravery and courage in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome.” The commander also highlighted how the teenager calmly conveyed key facts. When asked to describe the equipment for the rescue team, the boy said: “They were a green and white colour.” “And I’m not sure if it’s there, but they had this fishing line, and there was a fish hooked. Since we caught one.”