We Must Have a Helicopter to Go Find Them’: Teenager’s Distress Call to Save Family Adrift Off Aussie Coast Unveiled

“We got lost out there,” the teenager informs the emergency operator, after swimming four kilometres in treacherous, open ocean and running 2km to summon rescue for his family.

The dispatcher asks how much time has gone by since he set off.

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

Emergency services have disclosed the recorded plea made last month after the boy left his loved ones floating at sea off the West Australian coast to find rescuers.

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

“I have no idea about what their status is right now, and I’m terrified,” he confides in the dispatcher.

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

The Dangerous Incident

The mother and children had been carried 4km out to sea in stormy conditions while using kayaks and paddleboards.

His mother asked him to take his kayak and locate rescue, so the teenager commenced, ditching first his failing kayak then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After reaching land – after an extensive period – he raced for two kilometres to get to a mobile 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 operator.

“I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have heatstroke, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Getaway in Peril

The family was on a break in Quindalup, 125 miles south of Perth. They set off from Geographe Bay some time after 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman 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 went wrong very, very quickly,” she said.

The parent also referenced having to make “a terribly difficult call” to ask her son to swim to land.

“I knew he was the most capable and he was able to manage it,” she stated.

The Search Operation

The teenager explained being “extremely winded”.

“I just pressed on, I do the breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do elementary backstroke,” he explained.

The distress call was made at about 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first set out, the stranded individuals were located and saved. They had floated about 14km out to sea.

The emergency call was released with the mother’s permission.

A forward commander who coordinated the search and rescue effort said the group was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

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

“What the teenager did was incredibly brave. His bravery and courage in those conditions were exceptional, and his actions were instrumental in bringing about a rescue.”

The commander also praised how the youth effectively communicated critical information.

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

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