We Require a Helicopter to Go Find Them’: Adolescent’s Emergency Call to Rescue Loved Ones Adrift Off Down Under Coast Disclosed

“We became disoriented out there,” a 13-year-old boy tells the triple-zero dispatcher, following a swim 4km in treacherous, open ocean and sprinting 1.25 miles to summon rescue for his household.

The operator asks how much time has passed since he began.

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

Authorities have disclosed the recorded plea made in recent weeks after the boy departed from his loved ones adrift at sea off the WA coast to find rescuers.

His demeanour remains lucid and collected, even as he voices his fear for his family members.

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

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

The Dangerous Incident

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

His mum instructed him to set out and get assistance, so the teenager set off, abandoning first his failing kayak then his bulky flotation device to make the journey by swimming.

After reaching land – after an extensive period – he ran for 1.25 miles to retrieve a phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have a brother and sister, 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 add – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have heatstroke, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Vacation Gone Wrong

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 described that they were having fun when the children “drifted further than intended”. The breeze strengthened, they were separated from their equipment, and started being carried out.

“It pretty much all went wrong very, very quickly,” she remarked.

The mother also spoke of having to make “an incredibly tough choice” to instruct her son to make the swim for help.

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

The Rescue Effort

The youth explained being “extremely winded”.

“I just keep swimming, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do survival backstroke,” he said.

The emergency call was made at about 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, many hours after they first began, the stranded individuals were spotted and rescued. They had been carried about fourteen kilometres out to sea.

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

A police sergeant who managed the operation said the group was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

“They were in real trouble, and time was absolutely critical given how long they had been in the water and with night approaching.

“What the teenager did was truly remarkable. His heroic actions in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were crucial in bringing about a positive result.”

The commander also commended how the boy effectively communicated critical information.

When asked to describe the boards for the search crew, the boy said: “They were a green and white colour.”

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