We Require a Helicopter to Go Find Them’: Teenager’s Distress Call to Aid Relatives Lost Off Australian Coast Unveiled

“We became disoriented out there,” a 13-year-old boy informs the 000 call handler, after swimming 4km in rough, open ocean and sprinting two kilometres to secure help for his household.

The operator asks how much time has gone by since he started out.

“[It] was quite some time back … I think they’re far offshore. I think we must get a helicopter to locate them,” he states.

Emergency services have released the distress call made in recent weeks after the boy left his relatives drifting at sea off the Western Australian coast to fetch help.

His voice remains lucid and collected, even as he details his fear for his family.

“I am unsure of what their state is right now, and I’m really scared,” he confides in the person on the line.

“Mum said to seek assistance … We were in serious danger.”

The Dangerous Incident

The holidaymakers had been pulled 2.5 miles out to sea in treacherous conditions while using kayaks and paddleboards.

His parent instructed him to take his kayak and find help, so the boy set off, discarding first his sinking craft then his bulky flotation device to swim the distance.

After making it to shore – after an extensive period – he ran for 1.25 miles to get to 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 call handler.

“I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also add – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m completely exhausted. I have heatstroke, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Getaway in Peril

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

The mother later explained that they were enjoying themselves when the kids “went out a bit too far”. The wind picked up, they lost their oars, and started being carried out.

“It kind of all turned bad very, very quickly,” she noted.

The parent also spoke of having to make “an incredibly tough choice” to send her son to swim to land.

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

The Rescue Effort

The youth explained being “completely out of breath”.

“I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do a floating stroke,” he recalled.

The emergency call was made at around 6pm.

At around 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first departed, the stranded individuals were found and brought to safety. They had floated about 9 miles out to sea.

The recording was made public with the family’s permission.

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

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

“What the teenager did was incredibly brave. His heroic actions in those conditions were exceptional, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a positive result.”

The officer also highlighted how the boy effectively communicated key facts.

When asked to identify the boards for the authorities, the youth replied: “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. Since we caught one.”