We Must Have a Helicopter to Search For Them’: Teenager’s Urgent Plea to Rescue Family Stranded Off Down Under Coast Unveiled

“We got lost out there,” the teenager tells the 000 call handler, having swum 4km in choppy, the sea and sprinting two kilometres to secure help for his kin.

The dispatcher questions 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 must get a rescue aircraft to go find them,” he states.

Police have made public the emergency phone call made previously after the boy left his loved ones drifting at sea off the Western Australian coast to find rescuers.

His demeanour remains lucid and collected, even as he voices his concern for his family.

“I am unsure of what their state is right now, and I’m really scared,” he informs the operator.

“Mum said to find rescue … We were in massive trouble.”

The Perilous Situation

The family group had been carried 4km out to sea in rough conditions while kayaking and paddleboarding.

His parent instructed him to take his kayak and find help, so the boy set off, ditching first his sinking craft then his cumbersome lifejacket to make the journey by swimming.

After reaching land – following a four-hour swim – he sprinted for two kilometres to retrieve a phone.

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

“I’m sitting on the beach right now, and I have to also add – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m extremely tired. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to collapse.”

A Getaway in Peril

The group was on vacation 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 recalled that they were playing around when the young ones “drifted further than intended”. The wind picked up, they dropped their paddles, and started floating away.

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

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

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

The Search Operation

The boy recalled being “completely out of breath”.

“I just pressed on, I do the breaststroke, I do front crawl, I do elementary backstroke,” he recalled.

The emergency call was made at about 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, ten hours after they first departed, the group were located and saved. They had floated about 9 miles out to sea.

The audio was made public with the mother’s permission.

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

“They were in genuine danger, and time was of the essence given how long they had been in the water and with light running out.

“What the teenager did was truly remarkable. His bravery and courage in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a positive result.”

The commander also praised how the boy clearly relayed key facts.

When asked to identify the paddleboards for the search crew, the boy said: “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 catch on the line. Because we managed to catch a fish.”