‘We Need a Helicopter to Search For Them’: Teenager’s Emergency Call to Aid Loved Ones Lost Off Aussie Coast Unveiled

“We got lost out there,” the teenager explains to the 000 call handler, having swum 2.5 miles in treacherous, the sea and running two kilometres to get assistance for his family.

The call taker asks how long has passed since he started out.

“[It] was quite some time back … I think they’re kilometres out to sea. I think we require a chopper to go find them,” he says.

Emergency services have released the emergency phone call made previously after the youth left his loved ones adrift at sea off the West Australian coast to fetch help.

His voice remains lucid and collected, even as he expresses his worry for his family members.

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

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

The Dangerous Incident

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

His mum urged him to use his craft and get assistance, so the teenager commenced, abandoning first his waterlogged vessel then his bulky flotation device to make the journey by swimming.

After reaching land – four hours later – he sprinted for 1.25 miles to access a mobile phone.

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

“I’m positioned on the beach right now, and I have to also mention – I think I need an ambulance because I think I have exposure … I’m really, I’m utterly fatigued. I have sunstroke, and I feel like I’m about to faint.”

A Getaway in Peril

The family was on a break in Quindalup, 125 miles south of Perth. They began their trip from Geographe Bay around 10am on a Friday in late January.

The parent later described that they were having fun when the young ones “drifted further than intended”. The conditions worsened, they lost their oars, and started being carried out.

“It pretty much all turned bad very, very quickly,” she noted.

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

“I knew he was the best swimmer and he was able to manage it,” she stated.

The Search Operation

The boy recalled being “very puffed out”.

“I just keep swimming, I do the breaststroke, I do freestyle, I do survival backstroke,” he said.

The emergency call was made at about 6pm.

At about 8.30pm, a full ten hours after they first began, the stranded individuals were located and saved. They had drifted about fourteen kilometres out to sea.

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

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

“They were in real trouble, and time was absolutely critical given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading.

“What Austin did was nothing short of extraordinary. His bravery and courage in those conditions were exceptional, and his actions were crucial in bringing about a rescue.”

The sergeant also praised how the boy calmly conveyed critical information.

When asked to identify the paddleboards for the rescue team, the teenager replied: “They were coloured green and white.”

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