‘We Need a Aircraft to Search For Them’: Adolescent’s Urgent Plea to Aid Family Adrift Off Aussie Coast Unveiled

“We became disoriented out there,” the teenager informs the emergency operator, following a swim four kilometres in treacherous, open water and jogging 2km to secure help for his family.

The dispatcher questions how much time has passed since he began.

“[It] was a very long time ago … I think they’re a long way from land. I think we must get a helicopter to search for them,” he says.

Police have released the recorded plea made previously after the youth left his relatives floating at sea off the West Australian coast to seek assistance.

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

“I don’t know what their state is right now, and I’m terrified,” he confides in the dispatcher.

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

The Harrowing Ordeal

The holidaymakers had been pulled 4km out to sea in treacherous conditions while kayaking and paddleboarding.

His mum instructed him to use his craft and find help, so the teenager set off, ditching first his waterlogged vessel then his unwieldy PFD to cover the remaining stretch.

After making it to shore – following a four-hour swim – he ran for 2km to access a phone.

“Hello, my name is Austin … I have a brother and sister, 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 mention – 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 faint.”

A Getaway in Peril

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

The mother later recalled that they were playing around when the kids “ventured out too far”. The wind picked up, they were separated from their equipment, and started drifting.

“It sort of all became dangerous very, very quickly,” she remarked.

The mother also spoke of having to make “an incredibly tough choice” to instruct her son to swim to land.

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

The Rescue Effort

The youth recalled being “completely out of breath”.

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

The call for help was made at about 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, ten hours after they first departed, the family were found and brought to safety. They had been carried about 9 miles out to sea.

The recording was shared with the parents' permission.

A police sergeant who coordinated the operation said the family was in an “incredibly perilous state”.

“They were in real trouble, and time was of the essence given how long they had been in the water and with night approaching.

“What Austin did was truly remarkable. His bravery and courage in those conditions were exceptional, and his actions were instrumental in bringing about a rescue.”

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

When asked to detail the boards for the search crew, the teenager responded: “They were green and white.”

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