‘We Need a Aircraft to Search For Them’: Adolescent’s Distress Call to Rescue Loved Ones Lost Off Australian Coast Disclosed

“We got lost out there,” a 13-year-old boy explains to the emergency operator, after swimming 4km in treacherous, the sea and jogging 2km to secure help for his kin.

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

“[It] was ages past … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we need a helicopter to search for them,” he states.

Authorities have made public the distress call made in recent weeks after the youth departed from his loved ones 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 members.

“I am unsure of what their condition is right now, and I’m extremely frightened,” he informs the dispatcher.

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

The Dangerous Incident

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

His parent asked him to take his kayak and locate rescue, so the teenager commenced, discarding first his failing kayak then his cumbersome lifejacket to cover the remaining stretch.

After getting to the beach – four hours later – he raced for 2km to get to a phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have two siblings, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he tells the emergency services.

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have hypothermia … I’m really, I’m completely exhausted. I have sunstroke, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Holiday Turned Crisis

The holidaymakers was on holiday in Quindalup, 125 miles south of Perth. They set off from Geographe Bay around 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman later recalled that they were playing around when the kids “went out a bit too far”. The breeze strengthened, they were separated from their equipment, and started being carried out.

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

The parent also described having to make “an incredibly tough choice” to send her son to make the swim for help.

“I knew he was the most capable and he could do it,” she said.

The Search Operation

The boy explained being “extremely winded”.

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

The emergency call was made at about 6pm.

At about 8.30pm, ten hours after they first departed, the family were found and brought to safety. They had drifted about 14km out to sea.

The recording was released with the family’s permission.

A police sergeant who managed the rescue mission said the group was in an “extremely dire situation”.

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

“What Austin did was incredibly brave. His heroic actions in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a rescue.”

The commander also highlighted how the youth clearly relayed critical information.

When asked to describe the boards for the authorities, the boy replied: “They were coloured green and white.”

“And I’m not sure if it’s there, but they had this fishing line, and there was a catch on the line. Because we managed to catch a fish.”