We Require a Helicopter to Go Find Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Distress Call to Rescue Relatives Lost Off Australian Coast Revealed

“We ended up adrift out there,” the teenager explains to the triple-zero dispatcher, having swum 2.5 miles in choppy, open ocean and jogging two kilometres to summon rescue for his kin.

The call taker asks how long has elapsed since he began.

“[It] was quite some time back … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we require a helicopter to go find them,” he says.

Authorities have disclosed the recorded plea made last month after the teen left his relatives adrift at sea off the Western Australian coast to fetch help.

His demeanour remains clear and calm, even as he details his concern for his kin.

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

“Mum said go get help … We were in massive trouble.”

The Perilous Situation

The holidaymakers had been carried 4km out to sea in stormy conditions while enjoying water sports.

His mother instructed him to use his craft and get assistance, so the teenager commenced, ditching first his sinking craft then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After making it to shore – four hours later – he ran for two kilometres 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 states the operator.

“I’m located on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an medical help because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Getaway in Peril

The group was on holiday in Quindalup, 200km south of Perth. They set off from Geographe Bay following 10am on a Friday in late January.

The woman later described that they were playing around when the kids “went out a bit too far”. The wind picked up, they dropped their paddles, and started being carried out.

“It kind of all turned bad very, very quickly,” she remarked.

The parent also described having to make “a terribly difficult call” to ask her son to make the swim for help.

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

The Rescue Effort

The boy described being “very puffed out”.

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

The distress call was made at approximately 6pm.

At around 8.30pm, many hours after they first set out, the stranded individuals were spotted and rescued. They had floated about 9 miles out to sea.

The audio was released with the mother’s permission.

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

“They were in genuine danger, and time was absolutely critical given how much time they had been in the water and with night approaching.

“What the boy did was nothing short of extraordinary. His heroic actions in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were instrumental in bringing about a successful outcome.”

The commander also highlighted how the youth effectively communicated vital details.

When asked to detail the paddleboards for the rescue team, the boy responded: “They were a green and white colour.”

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