We Require a Aircraft to Go Find Them’: Teenager’s Urgent Plea to Aid Relatives Adrift Off Down Under Coast Unveiled

“We ended up adrift out there,” the teenager explains to the 000 call handler, following a swim four kilometres in rough, open ocean and jogging two kilometres to summon rescue for his family.

The call taker inquires how long has gone by since he began.

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

Police have disclosed the recorded plea made last month after the teen left his loved ones floating at sea off the Western Australian coast to find rescuers.

His voice remains steady and composed, even as he details his concern for his family.

“I am unsure of what their condition is right now, and I’m extremely frightened,” he confides in the operator.

“Mum said go get help … We were in grave peril.”

The Dangerous Incident

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

His mother instructed him to take his kayak and locate rescue, so the youth commenced, abandoning first his waterlogged vessel then his bulky flotation device to cover the remaining stretch.

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

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

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an paramedic because I think I have hypothermia … I’m really, I’m extremely tired. I have hyperthermia, and I feel like I’m about to pass out.”

A Holiday Turned Crisis

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

The woman later described that they were playing around when the kids “drifted further than intended”. The wind picked up, they lost their oars, and started being carried out.

“It sort of all went wrong very, very quickly,” she said.

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

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

The Search Operation

The youth explained being “extremely winded”.

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

The distress call was made at around 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first began, the group were spotted and rescued. They had drifted about 9 miles out to sea.

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

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

“They were in real trouble, and time was of the essence given how much time they had been in the water and with light running out.

“What the boy did was truly remarkable. His heroic actions in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome.”

The commander also praised how the boy clearly relayed critical information.

When asked to describe the boards for the search crew, the boy said: “They were coloured green and white.”

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