Emergency Call Shows 13-Year-Old Said ‘We’re in Massive Trouble’ After He Swam to Shore to Save Mom and Siblings

“I’m really scared,” Austin Appelbee told the police dispatcher after his heroic act last month

Austin Appelbee.Australian Broadcasting Corp via AP

NEED TO KNOW

A 13-year-old boy swam miles to call for help when his family was swept out to sea off the coast of Australia on Jan. 30

This week, police released the heroic emergency phone call that the teen made once he reached the shore

“I don’t know what their condition is right now,” the child told the dispatcher

After a 13-year-old boy swam almost three miles back to shore to save family members who had been swept out to sea, Australian officials have released his call to emergency dispatch.

“We got swept out to sea, and we got lost out there,” Austin Appelbee said on the emergency triple-zero phone call that he made after he and his family got pulled far off the coast of Quindalup, in Geographe Bay, on Jan. 30, according to a recording and statement shared by the Western Australia Police Force.

“I don’t know what their condition is right now,” he told the dispatcher later, after detailing his location and what occurred. “I’m really scared.”

That Friday evening, Appelbee, his mom, Joanne, and his two siblings, Beau, 12, and Grace, 8, were kayaking and paddleboarding off the coast of Western Australia when they were swept far out to sea, the Western Australia Police Force said in its statement.

That’s when the 13-year-old boy decided to return to shore, despite the “fading light and deteriorating conditions,” according to police.

The teen was able to paddle a short distance before his kayak took on water, officials said. With no other options, the boy swam approximately two-and-a-half miles to shore.

“I didn’t think I was a hero — I just did what I did,” Austin told the BBC of the risk he took to save his family.

Joanne told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that asking her eldest child to go for help was “one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make.”

Once on shore, the teen ran more than a mile along the beach to reach a mobile phone, according to police.

“We got lost around about, I don’t know what time it was, but it was a very long time ago, we couldn’t get back to shore and Mum told me to go back to get help … we’re in massive trouble,” he told the dispatcher, according to the recording. “I haven’t seen them since. I think they’re kilometres out in sea, I think we need helicopters to go find them.”

Meanwhile, Austin asked for an ambulance because he feared he had hypothermia and could pass out because he was dizzy.

Cape Naturaliste at the edge of Geographe Bay in Western Australia, Australia.Getty

By 8:30 p.m. local time, 10 hours after the Appelbees first entered the sea, Joanne, Grace and Beau were located following a multi-agency search, officials said. The trio was clinging to a paddleboard.

The family was treated at a local hospital and later released without serious injury, according to authorities.

While releasing an emergency call isn’t standard procedure, the Western Australia Police Force received permission from Austin’s mom to share the recording to educate others about how to respond during an emergency situation.

In its statement, the Western Australia Police Force praised the teen’s “calm, clear communication,” which helped save the lives of his mom and two younger siblings.

“What Austin did was nothing short of extraordinary,” said Police Forward Commander Acting Sergeant Andrew McDonnell, who coordinated the rescue effort, in a statement. “His bravery and courage in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome.”

The Western Australia Police Force added that they hope they can “join forces” with Austin in the future.