‘We Need a Helicopter to Locate Them’: Adolescent’s Emergency Call to Rescue Relatives Lost Off Down Under Coast Revealed

“We ended up adrift out there,” a 13-year-old boy informs the triple-zero dispatcher, following a swim 4km in choppy, open ocean and jogging two kilometres to secure help for his family.

The call taker asks how long has gone by since he set off.

“[It] was a very long time ago … I think they’re kilometres out to sea. I think we need a helicopter to search for them,” he states.

Emergency services have disclosed the distress call made in recent weeks after the teen left his loved ones adrift at sea off the West Australian coast to seek assistance.

His voice remains clear and calm, even as he expresses his concern for his family.

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

“Mum said to find rescue … We were in serious danger.”

The Perilous Situation

The family group had been swept 2.5 miles out to sea in treacherous conditions while kayaking and paddleboarding.

His mother instructed him to take his kayak and find help, so the teenager set off, discarding first his failing kayak then his cumbersome lifejacket to make the journey by swimming.

After getting to the beach – four hours later – he sprinted for 2km to retrieve 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 tells the operator.

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also explain – 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 Vacation Gone Wrong

The family 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 explained that they were playing around when the kids “drifted further than intended”. The conditions worsened, they dropped their paddles, and started floating away.

“It sort of all went wrong very, very quickly,” she noted.

The mother also spoke of having to make “a terribly difficult call” to send her son to swim ashore.

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

The Rescue Effort

The boy recalled being “very puffed out”.

“I just pressed on, I do the breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do a floating stroke,” he explained.

The emergency call was made at approximately 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, ten hours after they first departed, the family were spotted and rescued. They had been carried about fourteen kilometres out to sea.

The recording was shared with the parents' permission.

A senior officer who oversaw the search and rescue effort said the family was in an “extremely dire situation”.

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

“What the boy did was nothing short of extraordinary. 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 critical information.

When asked to detail 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. As we caught one.”