‘We Need a Aircraft to Go Find Them’: Teenager’s Distress Call to Aid Loved Ones Adrift Off Aussie Coast Unveiled

“We ended up adrift out there,” a 13-year-old boy explains to the 000 call handler, after swimming four kilometres in choppy, open water and running 1.25 miles to get assistance for his family.

The operator asks 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 require a helicopter to go find them,” he reports.

Emergency services have disclosed the recorded plea made previously after the boy departed from his relatives drifting at sea off the Western Australian coast to seek assistance.

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

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

“Mum said to seek assistance … We were in massive trouble.”

The Perilous Situation

The mother and children had been swept 4km out to sea in treacherous conditions while enjoying water sports.

His parent instructed him to set out and locate rescue, so the youth commenced, ditching first his sinking craft then his bulky flotation device to make the journey by swimming.

After reaching land – after an extensive period – he ran for two kilometres to get to a cell phone.

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

“I’m located on the beach right now, and I have to also add – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have a dangerously low body temperature … I’m really, I’m extremely tired. I have heatstroke, and I feel like I’m about to pass out.”

A Getaway in Peril

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

The parent later described that they were enjoying themselves when the children “drifted further than intended”. The conditions worsened, they were separated from their equipment, and started floating away.

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

The parent also referenced having to make “one of the hardest decisions” to instruct her son to swim ashore.

“I knew he was the strongest and he could do it,” she commented.

The Successful Mission

The youth described being “completely out of breath”.

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

The emergency call was made at about 6pm.

At around 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first set out, the group were found and brought to safety. They had floated about 9 miles out to sea.

The audio was shared with the family’s permission.

A forward commander who managed the operation said the group was in an “extremely dire situation”.

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

“What the teenager did was incredibly brave. His heroic actions in those conditions were astonishing, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome.”

The commander also praised how the boy calmly conveyed vital details.

When asked to detail the equipment for the search crew, the teenager said: “They were a green and white colour.”

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