We Require a Chopper to Locate Them’: 13-Year-Old’s Emergency Call to Aid Family Stranded Off Down Under Coast Disclosed

“We got lost out there,” a 13-year-old boy tells the triple-zero dispatcher, following a swim 4km in choppy, open water and running two kilometres to get assistance for his household.

The dispatcher questions how long has passed 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 states.

Authorities have released the distress call made in recent weeks after the youth left his relatives floating at sea off the WA coast to fetch help.

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

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

“Mum said go get help … We were in massive trouble.”

The Harrowing Ordeal

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

His parent instructed him to use his craft and locate rescue, so the teenager set off, abandoning first his failing kayak then his unwieldy PFD to swim the distance.

After reaching land – after an extensive period – he raced for two kilometres to access a phone.

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

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

A Getaway in Peril

The group was on a break in Quindalup, two hundred kilometres south of Perth. They began their trip from Geographe Bay around 10am on a Friday in late January.

The mother later described that they were playing around when the children “went out a bit too far”. The wind picked up, they were separated from their equipment, and started drifting.

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

The mother also spoke of having to make “a terribly difficult call” to ask her son to make the swim for help.

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

The Successful Mission

The teenager explained being “extremely winded”.

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

The call for help was made at around 6pm.

At roughly 8.30pm, many hours after they first set out, the family were found and brought to safety. They had floated about 14km out to sea.

The recording was made public with the parents' permission.

A police sergeant who oversaw the search and rescue effort said the group was in an “extremely dire situation”.

“They were in genuine danger, and time was extremely pressing 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 sergeant also highlighted how the youth clearly relayed vital details.

When asked to identify the boards for the search crew, the youth said: “They were green and white.”

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