We Require a Helicopter to Go Find Them’: Adolescent’s Distress Call to Aid Relatives Stranded Off Down Under Coast Unveiled

“We got lost out there,” a 13-year-old boy tells the 000 call handler, having swum 2.5 miles in choppy, open water and running two kilometres to summon rescue for his household.

The operator inquires how much time has elapsed since he started out.

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

Authorities have released the distress call made last month after the youth left his loved ones drifting at sea off the West Australian coast to find rescuers.

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

“I don’t know what their condition is right now, and I’m really scared,” he confides in the person on the line.

“Mum said to find rescue … We were in grave peril.”

The Dangerous Incident

The mother and children had been swept 2.5 miles out to sea in rough conditions while using kayaks and paddleboards.

His mother instructed him to take his kayak and get assistance, so the youth commenced, ditching first his failing kayak then his unwieldy PFD to make the journey by swimming.

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

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have younger siblings, Beau and Grace. Beau is 12 and Grace is eight,” he explains the call handler.

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also add – I think I need an medical help because I think I have hypothermia … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Getaway in Peril

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

The parent later recalled that they were having fun when the children “ventured out too far”. The breeze strengthened, they lost their oars, and started floating away.

“It pretty much all became dangerous very, very quickly,” she said.

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

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

The Rescue Effort

The teenager recalled being “completely out of breath”.

“I just pressed on, I do breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do survival backstroke,” he said.

The distress call was made at about 6pm.

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

The recording was made public with the parents' permission.

A forward commander who oversaw the rescue mission said the family was in an “desperately dangerous position”.

“They were in real trouble, and time was extremely pressing given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading.

“What Austin did was nothing short of extraordinary. His bravery and courage in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a rescue.”

The sergeant also commended how the teenager effectively communicated key facts.

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

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